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TEXAS 

THE MARVELLOUS 



THE STATE OF THE 



FLAGS 



Including Accounts of the Spanish Settlement amd Establishment 
of the Indian Missions; the Unfortunate Expedition and Death 
of La Salle ; the Romance of its Early Settlement emd Stories of 
its Hcirdy Pioneers ; the Nine-year Republic of Texas ; Stephen F. 
Austin and Sam Houston ; "Remember the Alamo"; the Develop- 
ment of the Cattle Ranches ; the Great RcUiches and a Visit to a 
Million-acre Ranch ; the Growing Cities; the Rehabilitation of Gal- 
veston; Along the Troublesome Mexican Border; the Uttermost 
ComerofTexas; the W)nderful Gulf Coast ;thePanhandle;theBlack 
Waxy Belt; theTimber Region ; the Llano Estacada, the Disappear- 
ing Desert, and the GenereJ Development of this Mcirvellous State 



NEVIN (#WINTER 

Author of 
"The Russian Empire of To-Day and Yesterday," "Poland of To-Day 
and Yesterday," "Argentina and Her People of To-Day," "Brazil and 
Her People of To-Day," "Guatemala and Her People of To-Day," etc. 

With a map and fifty-four plates, 
of which six are in colour 




THE PAGE COMPANY 
BOSTON Ji MDCCCCXVI 






Copyright, 1916, by 
The Page Company 

All rights reserved 



First Impression, June, 1916 






JUL 31 1916 



)GI,A487055 



TO 

HON. CHARLES M. MILROY 

MAYOR OF TOLEDO 



PREFACE 

Whether one is in search of alluring and romantic 
history, is interested in great natural resources, or is 
attracted by its mere "bigness," Texas offers an in- 
viting field. The Spanish conquest, with its early 
missions, has left a deep imprint. The great explorer. 
La Salle, whose adventures surpass the chimeras of the 
most imaginative novelist, ended his earthly career on the 
plains of the Tejas. After a couple of centuries of the 
rule of Spain, during which the booted and mailed 
cavaliers of that kingdom misruled the country, followed 
by a few years as a province of Mexico, there came the 
Republic of Texas. This Republic is one of the most 
unique examples of national sovereignty that the world 
has ever witnessed, for a province of thirty thousand 
people won independence from a nation of several mil- 
lions. But these thirty thousand were, for the most part, 
men of sturdy Anglo-American stock. 

Interesting and fascinating as is the history of the 
Republic of Texas, a nation in an almost undeveloped 
wilderness, that of the succeeding State of Texas is 
no less worthy of our consideration. After almost ten 
years of independence, the Texans voluntarily gave up 
their sovereignty to become one of the galaxy of States 
under the glorious banner of the United States. This 
action is also almost without precedent; but the change 
from independence to interdependence was accomplished 
with little friction. Then came the sanguinary struggle 
to wrest the soil from the aborigines, as well as from the 
lawless whites and Mexicans, who made it their home. 



viii Preface 

All of these changes and struggles, and their accom- 
panying influences, have developed the Texans into a peo- 
ple differing somewhat from those of the other States; 
and these characteristics make the study of Texas and 
the Texans still more fascinating. 

Few persons, unless they have had a visual demon- 
stration, fully appreciate the almost unprecedented de- 
velopment that is now taking place in Texas. The 
primeval sword is disappearing before the onslaughts of 
the tractor, with its dozen ploughs. The million-acre 
ranch is still there, but these princely domains are dis- 
integrating into smaller holdings, a change 'which is fol- 
lowed by a more intensive cultivation. The semi-arid 
prairie is in many places yielding to the influence of irri- 
gation. Furthermore, this marvellous State of illimitable 
distances, which is primarily an agricultural domain, is 
becoming a commonwealth with great and progressive 
cities. There seems to be no limits to the Texas of 
the future. But while we look forward to the possi- 
bilities of the years to come, we should also look back- 
wards to the romance of the past. 

This State, which has been under six flags, represent- 
ing as many different sovereignties, is worthy our study 
and attention. There is scarcely a grove, a canyon, a 
river, or a valley that has not been the scene of some 
romantic or daring incident. In fact, we will not thor- 
oughly comprehend the United States, and especially 
the great Southwest, until we know and understand 
Texas — the greatest State in the greatest republic of 
the whole world. 

Nevin O. Winter. 
Toledo, Ohio. 



CONTENTS 



CHAPTER PAGE 

Preface vii 

I The Land and the People i 

II American Settlements in Texas . . . i8 

III The Struggle for Independence . . • 39 

IV The Lone Star Republic 60 

V The Lone Star State 73 

VI Charming and Historic San Antonio . . 90 

VII The Missions 115 

VIII Houston and San Jacinto 127 

IX Following the Setting Sun .... 142 

X The Gulf Coast .160 

XI Along the Rio Grande 181 

XII East Texas 201 

Xni The Black Waxy Belt 217 

XIV Around and About the Capital . . . 232 

XV The Panhandle and the Staked Plain . . 250 

XVI The Hero of San Jacinto 266 

XVII Life in the Early Days 284 

XVIII Ranches and Ranching 305 

XIX Pioneering in Government Affairs . .326 

Bibliography 337 

Index 339 



LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 



Deep Eddy (In full colour), (See page 24 j) . Frontispiece 

PAGE 

MAP OF TEXAS i"^, 

A Grazing Scene 41/^ 

A Texas Mammy g>^ 

David Crockett 13 ,^ 

Stephen F. Austin, from an Old Etching . . . 28 v 

General Santa Anna, from an Old Etching . . 42 >/^ 

Sam Houston (Zw/mW coZowr) 62'/, 

MiRABEAU B. Lamar, FROM AN Old Etching . . . 67'' 

President Tyler 75 ^^ 

The San Antonio River 99 "^ 

02 (^ 



The Water Tower, Fort Sam Houston, San Antonio 

Interior of the Alamo 

The Mission Concepcion {In full colour) .... 
Live Oak Tree in One of Houston's New Parks 

Typical View on a Texas Ranch 

An Irrigating Canal 

Alfalfa Farm, Near El Paso 

Partial View of Fort Bliss, El Paso .... 

A View in Corpus Christi _ _ , 

A Flowing Artesian Well 169 /^ 

A Glimpse of the Concrete Wall, Galveston 

Old City Hall, Galveston 

The Watch on the Rio Grande 

Group of Mexican Insurrectos, opposite Brownsville 

The Pecos River 

An Old and Picturesque Well 

The Rio Grande 190 



07 ^^' 

20^. 

321^ 

43 '^ 

49"/- 

54*^ 

S9>^ 

67^ 



76*^ 

78*^ 

81^ 

84/ 

86*^ 

88t</ 



List of Illustrations 



PAGE 

General Funston at the Gateway of Fort Brown, 

Brownsville iQS"^"^ 

Waterworks, Brownsville 195 y/" 

Home of a Mexican Family in the Jungle . . . 198 ^ 

Saw Mill, East Texas 207 ^ 

Spindle Top, Beaumont, as It Looks To-Day . . 209 / 

Ship Canal, Port Arthur am/" 

Rice Ready for Harvesting 215 1/, 

First Hoeing of Cotton {In full colour) .... 2i8»/ 

Harvesting the Cotton 221 v 

Main Street, Dallas 224v^ 

Viaduct, Dallas 226*/ 

Tarrant County Court House, Fort Worth . . 229 ^ 

The Capitol, Austin 232 ^^ 

Bridge over the Colorado River, Austin {In full colour) 23 7/ 
Historic Cannon at the Entrance to the Capitol, 

Austin 2391/ 

University of Texas, Austin (/»/mW coZowr) . . 242 v^, 

Oats Ready for the Thresher 257 y 

A New Town in the Panhandle 261 t 

The Spanish Bayonet 264 '. • 

President Jackson 2771 

Monument over Sam Houston's Grave, Huntsville . 283 -y 

"Big Foot" Wallace 290-'' 

A Comanche Warrior 302 1/ 

Tractor at Work on the Prairie 306 */ 

Silos on the King Million-acre Ranch .... 319 '/ 

Mexican Refugees Clearing Mesqihte . . . 321 v^ 
Exterior View of the Ranch House on the King 

Million-acre Ranch 323 



TEXAS, 
THE MARVELLOUS 



CHAPTER I 

THE LAND AND THE PEOPLE 

My Covenant : I agree to STUDY Texas, to TALK 
Texas, and to WORK for the upbuilding of my State. 

This is a characteristic motto that one will stumble upon 
in many places in the great Lone Star State. It is indi- 
cative likewise of the character of the average Texan. 
He is a natural born, dyed-in-the-wool, unblushing, and 
indefatigable booster for his Stat^ And well may he be. 
The man who lives in a State whose area equals all New 
England and New York and Pennsylvania and New 
Jersey and Virginia and Delaware and North Carolina — ■ 
nearly as many square miles as the original Thirteen. 
Colonies — has something to boast about. It is greater 
in expansion than Germany and the British Isles to- 
gether. 

I mention these comparisons because every Texan does. 
On my first visit to that State, several years ago, in the 
course of a conversation, a great burly citizen, the brim 
of whose hat spread from shoulder to shoulder, abruptly 
said: 

"So you have never been in Texas before?" 
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TEXAS 

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Texas, the Marvellous 



The answer was in the affirmative. 

"Well, stranger, it is a great country," said he. "Do 
you know that it is six times as big as New York, 
and •" 

"Oh, yes, I know all that, but size is not everything." 

"Well, sir," he continued, in the drawl peculiar to that 
State, "it is filled with a great people, and you'll like 
Texas." 

He was right. I did like Texas, and several subse- 
quent visits have only deepened the impression. The 
descendants of those who died in the Alamo, of those who 
followed Houston in his retreat before the Mexicans, and 
finally turned on their pursuers with destructive energy 
at San Jacinto, the traditions of the revolution and the 
independence that followed, the indomitable determi- 
nation of those colonists and pioneers who wrested this 
land from the savages, has left an imprint of courage, 
self-assertion, virility, and hatred of subservience that 
characterizes the Texans of to-day in spite of the inter- 
mixture of races and nationalities that has followed. 

Texas, indeed, is a land of illimitable distances. In 
journeying from Texline, on the northwestern comer of 
the Panhandle, to the mouth of the Rio Grande in a di- 
rect line, one travels farther than from Chicago to New 
York. From El Paso to the Sabine River, on the border 
of Louisiana, the distance is barely a hundred miles 
shorter. Just turn the State completely over and Browns- 
ville would almost obliterate Winnipeg, Canada. A 
Texas editor puts it in this epigrammatic way: "If you 
tipped the State up and dropped it north like a tossed pan- 
cake, it would knock down the skyscrapers of St. Paul; 
and east, El. Paso would drop into the Atlantic; and south, 
the State would blot out most of Mexico. Of course 
Texas is big; children in school learn that it is big." The 



The Land and the People 



rest of us, who live in smaller States, must also admit that 
Texas is big, for it possesses an area of a quar- 
ter of a million square miles and several thousand 
more besides. 

To travel across Texas by the fastest train now run- 
ning requires one full day and several hours over. The 
Rio Grande forms its boundary for nearly eight hun- 
dred miles, and the Gulf of Mexico washes four hun- 
dred miles of its border. Hence it is that one's discur- 
sions throughout Texas are measured not by hours but 
by days. But it is not unending monotony. There is as 
much divergence in Texas climate as there is between 
Florida and Connecticut. In the southern counties the 
orange, the lemon, and other citrous fruits grow lux- 
uriantly; in the Panhandle, a precipitation of two feet of 
snow is not uncommon. While the cattle out on the 
Staked Plains, at the top of the Panhandle, are suffering 
from a driving blizzard, the bananas are ripening in the 
warm stmshine near Brownsville. In the east there is 
a broad timber belt which, while only an inconsiderable 
portion of the State, is in itself larger than any one of a 
dozen of our commonwealths. There is a black waxy 
prairie, on which cotton grows to perfection, which is 
vaster than the great State of Ohio. It possesses more 
wheat land than the Dakotas, and is vested with more 
corn land than Illinois. 

Proceeding from the east to the west the rainfall con- 
tinuously decreases. The splendid pines and oaks of 
East Texas gradually give way to less pretentious growths 
until even the sturdy and stubby mesquite succumbs to 
the insignificant sage brush. Thus it is that one finds a 
wonderful diversity of physical features in Texas. This 
unconformity is caused by the variety of climate and 
geological conditions. The Gulf Coast region is uplifted 



^ Texas, the Marvellous 

but little above sea level. This district is from fifty to 
one hundred miles in width. The greater part of it pre- 
sents many features of a subtropical province. Though 
it is lowr, most of the coast land is well drained, and 
only a small portion of it is under cultivation. 

The eastern portion of Texas presents almost identical 
conditions with Louisiana. Texas is one of our largest 
producers of pine lumber, and there is also a liberal sup- 
ply of hardwood timber. The forest conditions are very 
diverse, comprising the swamp and bayou growths, the 
wide territory of long-leaf pine, and the broad region of 
oaks to the north. Central Texas is a region of plateaus 
and rolling lands, much of it at an altitude of from one 
to two thousand feet above sea level. General farming 
and stock raising are the principal industries here, alter- 
nated with extensive cotton fields. It has large areas of 
fertile soil and a temperate climate. 

Away out in Northwestern Texas is found the great 
Panhandle section. This consists generally of high pla- 
teaus at an altitude of from three thousand to four thou- 
sand feet. It comprises forty-four counties, with an area 
about equal to Pennsylvania. For a long time the Pan- 
handle was almost exclusively a thinly settled stock coun- 
try, but in recent years its settlement has been advancing 
rapidly. The rainfall varies from fifteen to twenty-five 
inches annually, but the fertile soil yields good .returns 
under proper cultivation. Western Texas is still more 
arid. Here is a region of broad valleys and many ridges, 
interspersed with some lofty mountains that loom up nine 
thousand feet above the level of the sea. Very little 
of this section, with a rainfall of from ten to fifteen 
inches, is desert, for thousands of cattle graze in the 
valleys and on the slopes of the mountains. Two great 
rivers, the Rio Grande and the Pecos, traverse this belt, 



The Land and the People 



and a number of local irrigation projects have grown 
up along them. 

Texas is, and probably always will be, pre-eminently 
an agricultural State. Notwithstanding that the climate 
is extremely varied, it is generally mild, and the soil is 
fertile. Only a small portion of the state is as yet under 
cultivation, and yet the total of products produced is 
enormous. It already produces one-third of the aggre- 
gate amount of cotton grown in this country. Neverthe- 
less, it is claimed that not more than one-tenth of the land 
suitable for cotton is under cultivation. If that state- 
ment is true, Texas could market forty or fifty million 
bales of cotton yearly. 

Although the greater part of Texas is watered, the 
question of water is all important. The more water there 
is, the more cattle that can be owned. The grass may 
become short, and the rancher looks upon it philosophi- 
cally. Cattle will eat almost anything under the com- 
pulsion of hunger. If the wells or rivers are failing, 
however, great excitement results. Hence a story is re- 
lated which illustrates this characteristic. A wild-catter 
bored a well on a ranch with the hope that he might 
discover another Spindle Top pocket. He handed over 
to the rancher the tidy sum of five thousand dollars for 
the privilege of sinking the well. When the well was 
completed, no oil appeared — but a great overflowing well 
of pure water gleefully bubbled forth. The well driller 
was disgusted, but the rancher danced with joy. He 
was far happier than if oil had been found, for water 
added thousands upon thousands of dollars to his land. 
He repaid the money to the driller with a handsome bo- 
nus besides. The artesian wells found in several sec- 
tions of Texas have opened up to farming and gardening 
immense tracts aggregating millions of acres. 



Texas, the Marvellous 



"It will be a sad day for the country when the ranches 
disappear," said a big rancher to me. I felt like agree- 
ing with him. To watch the day die over one of the 
distant plains is a rare privilege. To look out across 
miles and miles and then more miles of grass, fringed 
with mesquite, and in places dotted with sage brush or 
prickly pear, to where sky meets earth, is an experience 
worth seeking for ; to close in the view with a fringe of 
blue hills standing clearly outlined against a cloudless sky 
in which the stars are beginning to appear is wonderful. 

"There's a hundred-dollar fine against carryin' a shoot- 
in'-iron in Texas these days," explained a rancher to me. 
Some of the picturesqueness of the ranch life has gone. 
The cowboys do not stand around wearing the "chappies," 
and with revolvers stuck in their belts as suggested by 
moving pictures. The cowboy is not extinct, but he is 
a changed creature. He is a part of a business establish- 
ment, and he generally conducts himself as such. The 
boss and the superintendent are far more likely to ride 
in a six-cylinder automobile than on the back of a horse. 

"Tempus fugit," said the Roman writer, and the ex- 
pression is just as true to-day. The days of the million- 
acre ranch are surely numbered. In a few years the one- 
hundred-thousand-acre ranch is likely to be infrequent, 
and farms of a thousand acres will supplant it. 

Were Texas peopled to-day as thickly as is Holland, 
it would contain more than one hundred millions of hu- 
man beings, a greater number than are found in the en- 
tire Union. Just step into the crowded east side district 
of our metropolis and you will discover thousands of 
people, men, women and helpless little children, huddled 
together in a cluster of rookeries extending over a few 
city blocks only. There is scarcely sufficient breathing 
room for all, and it makes you sigh. Here on these bound- 



The Land and the People 



less plains of Texas is elbow room and breathing space 
and distant vision for as many millions as there are thou- 
sands now on a single ranch. There is soil as splendid 
as any in these United States, with rain enough for or- 
dinary farming, and water in abundance not far beneath 
the surface. If the entire population of our land was 
put into Texas, that State would not be as crowded as are 
some of the New England States to-day. 

Will they come out where unpolluted air and freedom 
await them? Not voluntarily, perhaps. Forcible dis- 
semination of these gregarious city dwellers, from which 
the flotsam and jetsam of humanity arise, would accom- 
plish wonders in the upbuilding of the race and the solu- 
tion of many vexatious problems. Each year scores of 
thousands of real Americans emigrate from between the 
Atlantic and Mississippi, and disappear like the turgid 
flood of the Red River sinks from sight in the desert 
sands. They are absorbed by the level-horizoned lands 
which lie under the haze of the Southwest. A large 
percentage of these settle in Texas. 

It is the race for cheaper lands — the unconscious ef- 
fort of the nation to maintain its balance. The Poles, 
Hungarians, Lithuanians, Jews, and Italians take their 
places back East. The American-born demand greater 
freedom — less subjection to industrial conditions. Not 
many of the foreigners — excepting Mexicans, of course 
— reach Texas. Ninety per cent of them never cross the 
Father of Waters. The men who are developing Texas 
hail from the Middle Western States, and from Iowa, 
Kansas and Nebraska. Oklahoma developed as much in 
fifteen years as did Kansas in forty years. The same 
progress is now being made in many parts of Texas. 

There is an originality about the Texan that thrusts 
itself out in many ways. It is amusing to study the names 



8 Texas, the Marvellous 

of the counties. One might probably find several Davis 
counties in the South, but, in order to avoid confusion 
as to identity, Texas has a Jeff (not Jefferson, mind you) 
Davis County. Then Tom Greene has a block of land 
named after him, a Tom Greene County. And Tom 
Greene w^as well worthy of such a distinction. Way up 
in the Panhandle we find Deaf Smith County. Now there 
are many Smiths, both in Texas and the rest of the United 
States, but there is no confusion down in Texas about 
the hero by that name. The full name of this man was 
Erasmus Smith, but his infirmity induced the nickname. 
He was a splendid example of the wandering hunter and 
frontiersman, thoroughly at home in the wilderness, and 
he had a passion for the loneliness of the prairie and for- 
est. He participated in one of the earliest filibustering 
expeditions into Texas. 

Just a few years ago down in Southern Texas they 
wished to honour a local leader, so a section was carved 
out of another county and designated Jim Wells County. 
Jim Wells still exists in the flesh and blood, and I had 
the pleasure of meeting the namesake of this county. A 
governor of not many years ago, James S. Hogg, like- 
wise has the distinction of giving a name to a new county 
created by his friends in the Legislature. This new sub- 
division appears on the map as Jim Hogg County. Your 
map may not reveal all these counties, since they make 
a new county or two almost every year, so a map of 
Texas soon becomes obsolete. The only constitutional 
restrictions on the forming of counties is that a new 
county shall have an area of not less than seven hundred 
square miles, and it must not be nearer than twelve miles 
to the county seat of the county from which it is taken. 

They now have about two hundred and fifty of these 
subdivisions down in Texas. The names of the counties 




A TEXAS MAMMY 



The Land and the People 



contain quite a complete roster of the noted men in the 
history of the State. None are diminutive in area, but 
some are exceedingly meagre in population. In one of 
them, after thoroughly searching around among the mes- 
quite and prickly pear, some thirty-two voters were dis- 
covered at a general election not very long ago. Hidalgo 
and Cameron Counties in southernmost Texas would hold 
two and a half Delawares, or one Connecticut. In the 
vievi^Kjint of some old-time cattlemen this would con- 
stitute a sizable cow-lot. These two counties are dwarfed 
by the side of Brewster or El Paso. 

The population of Texas is as diversified as her land- 
scape. There is a discernible disparity in the men from 
the rice fields and the cotton fields, the piny woods and 
the Llano Estacado, the bustling cities, and the mesquite- 
covered ranges. The early settlers were generally South- 
erners with their slow drawl. Yankees followed up with 
their nasal twang. Settlers from the Middle West en- 
tered in with a burr on their tongues. The life on the 
plains developed a class of free-stepping men who had a 
picturesque language of their own. 

There are counties in the eastern part of the State 
where the negroes are as numerous as in the "black belt" 
of Alabama ; in others, they are not permitted to reside. 
As some one has put it: "Texans hate the negro, are 
fond of the negro, consign him to perdition, and declare 
they cannot get along without him." It all depends on 
which section of Texas you have in mind. In Houston, 
there are "Jim Crow" cars; in Galveston, a couple of 
hours distant, such a thing is unknown. Down in Hi- 
dalgo and Cameron Counties, more than half the inhabi- 
tants are Mexicans; in Bowie or Red River Counties a 
Mexican is unknown unless he happens to be a track em- 
ploye along the railroad. 



10 Texas, the Marvellous 

The cities of Texas are growing in number and popu- 
lation. One will encounter many fair-sized towns of four 
or five thousand whose birth occurred not more than a 
decade ago. The site was then nothing but mesquite and 
sage brush. I have in mind one town of that kind, which 
is already a city of six thousand or more. But it is built 
for a real metropolis. The water-works and sewers were 
constructed before a house was built. All wires are placed 
underground. A great central plaza was laid out, and 
at one corner was erected a hotel worthy a town ten times 
its population. The ranch owner simpiy decided that a 
town should be located there; a new county was carved 
out, and the new town became the county seat. And 
there never has been a saloon in the place, for every deed 
contains a prohibition against it. 

San Antonio has overpassed all in population, and now 
numbers her population in six figures. It is the metropo- 
lis of a wide area in one of the very prosperous sections 
of Texas. Dallas is a close second, and does not hesi- 
tate to claim first place within a few years. Thirty miles 
distant is Fort Worth, a city under one hundred thou- 
sand, but with nearly three times the population it had 
not many years ago. Within a hundred miles' radius of 
these two cities one-third of the population of Texas re- 
sides. Houston, the third city, is the hub of Southeastern 
Texas, and is the greatest cotton market in the world. 
Twenty per cent of the cotton produced in the United 
States is handled here. It lies only forty-five miles from 
the Gulf of Mexico. 

Galveston is a record of achievement almost unparal- 
leled. Six thousand of her inhabitants perished, and 
twenty million dollars' worth of property was destroyed 
in 1900, but to-day the city is greater than ever, and has 
provided against a recurrence of such a disaster. It is 



The Land and the People 11 

a long, long journey from Houston to El Paso, with many 
changes of scene. In many ways El Paso is an isolated 
city, for it is hundreds of miles east or west or north to 
an important city. Although in a sparsely inhabited re- 
gion, it is for that reason a most important business cen- 
tre, and is now a city of fifty thousand. Situated as it 
is, on our Southern frontier, with only the river separat- 
ing it from our neighbouring republic. El Paso handles 
a large proportion of our Mexican trade. 

Half a century ago Waco was an Indian village; now 
it is a progressive city of thirty thousand inhabitants. It 
is situated on the banks of the Brazos River, in the cen- 
tral part of the State, and is the metropolis of one of the 
most productive cotton-growing districts. Austin is the 
capital and, while not increasing so rapidly as some other 
Texas towns, is an important centre of civic and educa- 
tional interests. Beaumont is another of the important 
towns of Texas. The discovery of phenomenal deposits 
of oil here in 1901 gave wide fame to this city of the 
coastal plain. 

No State of the Union has enjoyed a more remarkable 
history than Texas. It was two hundred years after the 
discovery of America before the State had even an official 
designation. In fact, its boundaries were scarcely definite 
enough to claim such a distinction. The present appella- 
tion is explained in several different ways. Some say 
that it referred to the covering of the tents or wigwams 
of the Indians, the plural of which was Tejas. In that 
event this State would be "The Land of Tents." Another 
exegesis is that the Spaniards were greeted with the cry 
of "Tejas! Tejas!," which meant paradise. There are 
many Texans who aver that they are very well satisfied 
with this interpretation. The origin of the name is gen- 
erally accredited to that of a tribe of Indians, or con- 



12 Texas, the Marvellous 

federation of tribes, who dwelt on the shores of the Gulf. 
The name of these savages was generally spelled Tejas, 
and many of the earlier Spanish manuscripts adopt this 
spelling, but in either case the pronunciation would be the 
same. They could not have been very numerous, for 
the early explorers would frequently journey for days 
without seeing one red man. The name Nuevas Filipinas 
was tried for a while by the authorities, but Tejas, or 
Texas, finally prevailed. 

Six flags -have flown over Texas, including the ban- 
ners of three foreign powers — France, Spain and Mexico. 
First came the French flag, which was carried down the 
Mississippi River to the Gulf of Mexico by the intrepid 
La Salle; following this was the Spanish emblem, first 
thrown to the breeze under the direction of the Franciscan 
priests ; then came in succession the Mexican flag, and the 
Lone Star emblem of the Republic of Texas; the Stars 
and Stripes followed the Lone Star, but was supplanted 
for a time by the Stars and Bars of the Confederacy. In 
the struggle for ascendency among these various groups 
it is needless to say that much blood has been spilled, and 
countless tragedies have taken their places on the pages 
of history. For almost ten years Texas was an inde- 
pendent republic, with ministers at foreign courts as well 
as at Washington. 

In 1895, when the Texans celebrated their first semi- 
centennial of statehood, there were people still living over 
whose heads had flown the Spanish flag, the Mexican 
flag, the Lone Star emblem, the Confederate flag, and 
the glorious starred and striped banner of the United 
States. It is only a little over a hundred years since Cap- 
tain Zebulon Pike returned from his exploration of the 
Spanish province of Texas, and presented his report to 
President Jefferson about this almost unknown land. 






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DAVID CROCKETT 



The Land and the People 13 

Much history has been made since the long hike of old 
Zeb Pike, but it is a glorious record that vitalizes the 
spirit of every Texan to-day. The Texas child is re- 
quired to study the history of the State — and he never 
forgets it. The tradition of Texas thus becomes a part 
of the daily life and thought of the State. One cannot 
do otherw^ise than admire this pride of the Texans. Few 
States afford such heroes as Stephen Austin, Sam Hous- 
ton, David Crockett, and Ben Milam for a background. 

The Spaniards sailed along the Gulf Coast in 15 19, and 
were the first Caucasians to visit here. No effort at colo- 
nization was made at this time. Chevalier La Salle 
skirted the shore of Texas on New Year's Day, 1685, and 
sailed into Matagorda Bay. He believed it was one of 
the mouths of the Mississippi, which he had discovered 
three years previous. He established a colony there, which 
was short-lived, however, because of the assassination of 
the leader. A quarter of a century later the Spaniards 
planted a mission at San Antonio. This settlement was 
chartered by Ferdinand HI, in 173 1, with the name of 
San Fernando. It was subsequently known as Bexar, and 
finally as San Antonio. 

It cannot be asserted that the Spanish Conquistador es 
were successful, for they were not followed by genuine 
settlers, as was the case with both French and English 
colonies on the Atlantic Coast. The Spaniards were au- 
dacious, venturesome and courageous, and their accom- 
plishments fire the imagination. But the wanderings of 
De Soto, Coronado, and Cabeza de Vaca stand out as 
conspicuously for their fruitlessness as their prowess and 
fortitude. English colonists were satisfied with the New 
World, in spite of its newness and hardships, because of 
their dissatisfaction with the tyranny of the home gov- 
ernment. Spanish colonists preferred the old home ; they 



14 Texas, the Marvellous 

sought America only to secure an easy existence without 
labour. The mission establishments introduced priests, 
and occasionally lay religious brothers, who endeavoured 
to Christianize the natives. Twenty-five of these mis- 
sions, with the accompanying presidios (garrisons), were 
founded on Texas soil during Spanish occupation. And 
yet at the time the Americans began their incoming, there 
were only a few centres of Spanish settlement. The 
Spanish policy had failed as completely at Christianizing 
the Indians as it had in peopling the country. 

Mexico accomplished little more in Texas. Whereas 
the Spanish yoke had been endured for a hundred years 
and more, the Mexican was overthrown in fifteen. The 
Mexican leaders had enjoyed an unfortunate political 
schooling. The republic was only nominal. Of genuine 
republicanism there was scarcely a trace. There was no 
peace or agreement among the leaders. Finally came the 
arch traitor, Santa Anna. In 1836 the Mexican yoke was 
subverted by the brave Texans, and in 1845 Texas en- 
tered the Union. 

"If it had not been for the almost unparalleled bravery 
of the early Texans, this land on which we now travel 
would have been covered with cactus, mesquite and jack 
rabbits," said a San Antonian to me. And who can deny 
it ? It is always fascinating to speculate concerning "what 
might have been." But here we have something to meas- 
ure by. Compare the Mexico of to-day, as it exists across 
the Rio Grande, undeveloped, unprogressive and revolu- 
tion torn. Could Texas have expected a better fate had 
she remained under Mexican rule ? Would not the Mexi- 
can civilization have produced here just what it has de- 
veloped across the river? It does not seem at all im- 
reasonable so to believe. 

The reminders of the Spaniards are many. The most 



The Land and the People 15 

noticeable are in the names of cities and counties and 
rivers. The Nueces means nuts. Trinidad (Trinity) was 
the Spanish name given to the Ar-ko-ki-sa, as it was 
designated among the Indians. San Jacinto signifies 
Saint Hyacinth. Colorado is the Spanish for red, but 
the Indian name was Pash-o-ho-no. Brazos was prob- 
ably Brazos de Dies, the arm of God. Then we have 
San Marcos (Saint Mark), Rio Grande (Grand River), 
Angelina, Pecos, etc. Among the counties there are 
Llano, meaning a plain; Bandera, a flag; Blanco, signi- 
fying white; Concho, a shell; Frio (cold), Presidio (for- 
.. tress), and many others. Under the Spanish custom 

municipalities took the place of counties with us. The 
Spanish municipalities covered immense territories, and 
the former names are still preserved in the appellations 
of many of the counties. The lands were originally meas- 
ured by leagues and labours, after the Spanish custom, 
but sections have generally taken their place. Likewise 
an abstract of title to Texas lands will show many trans- 
fers by varas, instead of by our more common designa- 
tions by acres. 

Texas has always maintained her own individuality. 
The United Slates has never exercised control over her 
government. She never was a territory. When Texas 
entered the Union, she came in under her own terms. The 
act provided that the State reserved the ownership and 
control of her own public domain, and that her territory 
should not at any time be subdivided except by the con- 
sent of her own people. This was a unique condition 
which no other State has enjoyed. At that time Texas 
claimed a territory greater by one hundred thousand 
square miles than to-day. Some of her extensions to the 
north and west were transferred to the United States for 
ten million dollars, and now constitute the eastern half 



16 Texas, the Marvellous 

of New Mexico and parts of other States. It is still a 
sizable commonwealth, however, with one hundred and 
seventy million acres of land. 

Texas possesses a public land policy of her own which 
is materially different from that of all other common- 
wealths, the main feature being that it grants larger areas 
to the settler. The Republic of Texas possessed little 
cash, had no credit, but owned much land, and hence 
there were liberal grants of land. The new State was 
confronted with identical conditions. A few years ago 
several million acres were given to a syndicate as pay- 
ment for a new capitol. Half of the public domain was 
set apart for educational purposes. As this land is sold, 
the principal is invested, and only the income is used for 
educational purposes. Thus the education of the future 
youth is assured. 

This liberal provision for education began back in the 
time of the republic. The Constitution of 1836 says: 
"It is the axiom of political science that unless a people 
are educated and enlightened, it is idle to expect the con- 
tinuance of civil liberty, or the capacity of self-govern- 
ment." President Lamar, in his first message to Con- 
gress, urged appropriations of four leagues of land for 
school purposes to each county, and this recommendation 
was enacted into law. A number of years after statehood 
two million dollars in cash were set aside as a permanent 
school fund. This fund has been accumulating until 
to-day it has almost doubled. Subsequent legislation also 
reserved to the schools each alternate section of land 
which had been retained by the State in the grants made 
to railroads or other public improvements. By this legis- 
lation it is estimated an area larger than all New Eng- 
land was added to the public school endowment. 

Will there ever be more than one Texas ? Like a glass 



The Land and the People 17 

snake it may sometime break apart into several parts. 
The contract entered into between Texas and Uncle Sam, 
when the republic consented to become one of the United 
States, provided that it could be separated into five parts 
without any act of Congress. Whether that compact was 
abrogated or affected at all by the later purchase of a large 
portion has never been decided. Quite recently the peo- 
ple of West Texas have strongly agitated the creation 
of that section of the State into a new commonwealth 
to be called Jefferson. They allege that the policy of the 
entire State is dictated by the more populous eastern por- 
tion, and their own needs and desires are entirely over- 
looked or ignored. Only the future^will answer this ques- 
tion, for a prediction is valueless. It is safe to say, how- 
ever, that this dissatisfaction represents a condition which 
may grow and become formidable. 



CHAPTER II 

AMERICAN SKTTLEMENTS IN TEXAS 

Behold the great province of Texas, after a century 
or more of Spanish attempts at colonizing, with only 
three centres of Spanish population between the Sabine 
and the Rio Grande. These nuclei were at San Antonio, 
or Bexar, as the Spanish generally called it; at Nacog- 
doches, and at Goliad, which was also known as La 
Bahia. Goliad at that time contained probably a couple 
of thousand Mexicans. It is situated on the San An- 
tonio River, about ninety-five miles below the city of 
San Antonio and forty miles from its mouth. After 
the defeat of Santa Anna most of the Mexicans aban- 
doned the place. The dilapidated walls of the old mission 
and a few other ruins are all that remain to mark the 
old city. The new town of the same name is situated 
almost opposite the old town on the north bank of the 
river. San Patricio, the Irish colony, might almost be 
termed a fourth, for it possessed six hundred souls. The 
ancient town of Anahuac contained only fifty inhabi- 
tants. 

The failure of the Spanish method of colonization lay 
in the aversion of the Spanish Creoles to agriculture, 
and the dangers to which the settlers were exposed. In 
Mexico the enterprise of Spain was chiefly directed to 
the development of mines, while the cultivation of the 
soil was left to the passive natives. In Texas there were 
no mines to be developed, and the savage natives could 
IS 



American Settlements in Texas 19 

not be made to till the ground. Thus it was that the 
colonization of Texas was confined to the establishment 
of a few settlers in the immediate vicinity of the mili- 
tary posts. 

Among those who had been drawn to Texas were 
murderers and manslayers, bandits, and robbers, who 
had escaped the hands of justice in the States and Ter- 
ritories of the United States. Others were members of 
outlaw gangs that had been banished from their country, 
while many were convicted criminals of Mexico who had 
come here to serve in the army. Fraudulent debtors in 
the United States skipped away from their creditors 
during the night, and chalked on their shutters the three 
cabalistic letters "G. T. T." — "Gone to Texas." To some 
of these elements all law or restraint was an absolute 
mockery. These were the scouts and flying col- 
umns who preceded the advancing hosts of the Anglo- 
Saxons. 

With the opening of the nineteenth century, Texas 
began to emerge from that slough of stagnation in which 
she had been so long imbedded. Henceforth she became 
an object of attention and a field of strife, until she finally 
rose to the dignity of an independent republic. It was 
not an internal development, however, but was due to the 
advent of another race. At the beginning of the nine- 
teenth century, when American settlers and expeditions 
began to pour into Texas, the borders of that province 
on at least three sides were in a constant state of irrita- 
tion. Along the Gulf Coast, pirates had established them- 
selves at various places and preyed upon commerce of 
all kinds. The Comanches and the Apaches, in spite 
of all the efforts made to Christianize them, were a 
perpetual source of trouble. Although at least twenty- 
five missions had been established on Texas soil, nearly 



20 Texas, the Marvellous 

all of these had been destroyed, and in this work of de- 
struction the Comanches had taken the leading part. 
The efforts to Christianize the Indians had been just 
as pronounced a failure as the attempts at colonization, 
even though the mission establishments had been mul- 
tiplied. In 1834, a Spanish official, after a complete tour 
of inspection, estimated its white population at twenty- 
one thousand. There was but one school in the entire 
department of Bexar, and that was so poorly supported 
that it amounted to little. 

"What," says this official, "is to be the fate of those 
unhappy Mexicans, who dwell in the midst of savages 
without hope of civilization? In the whole department 
there is but one curate; the vicar died of cholera morbus 
in September last." He also says: "Money is scarce 
in Texas; not one in ten sales is made for cash. Pur- 
chases are made on credit, or by barter, which gives the 
country, in its trading relations, the appearance of a con- 
tinual fair." The Spanish garrisons were filled with the 
inmates of all the jails of Mexico, who had been turned 
loose as soldiers. They were about the most wretched 
and abandoned set of cutthroats and evildoers that ever 
made an indentation on the soil of any country. Their 
influence was almost wholly for evil. Many of the peo- 
ple were but slightly removed from barbarism. There 
was but little foreign export except in skins and furs. 
The purely Mexican settlements had degenerated rather 
than advanced in the preceding half century. 

When the Americans first set foot in Texas is a mat- 
ter that history does not make clear. Aaron Burr had 
evolved a far-reaching scheme to overthrow the govern- 
ment of Mexico in Texas, and, perhaps, some adjacent 
territory, and set up an independent government with 
himself at the head. At that time war with Spain seemed 



American Settlements in Texas 21 

imminent, and this might have made possible the ambi- 
tious plan of the man who almost became our third presi- 
dent. The failure of war, and the arrest of Burr for 
treason, made abortive his plans. It is' undoubtedly true 
that adventurers set out into this little known land, 
singly and in companies, to prospect its riches. Following 
these came a steadily flowing stream of pioneers, who 
sought new homes under better conditions than they had 
heretofore enjoyed. There is proof of instances of iso- 
lated settlers before the close of the eighteenth century, 
but when they came, or from whence they came, is not 
a matter of known record. 

The first real invasion of Texas by Americans was led 
by a man named Nolan. The real reason for his expe- 
dition is not known, and all kinds of conjectures have 
been made concerning it. It has even been said that the 
incursion was begun with the connivance of President 
Jefferson, who had an eye to future expansion. It is 
definitely known that Nolan was backed almost openly 
by General Wilkinson, who was commander-in-chief 
of the United States Army in the Southwest. The 
avowed purpose of the expedition was to purchase horses 
for the army. In a previous expedition under a pass- 
port, Nolan had proceeded as far as San Antonio, and 
did actually purchase several hundred head of horses, 
which he took back with him to Louisiana. The Nolan 
expedition left Natchez, Mississippi, late in 1800. 
Three of the party deserted, but with the remainder 
Nolan continued his journey into the interior of 
Texas. 

The expressed object of the second expedition into 
Texas was to capture wild horses. Nolan and his men 
penetrated the province as far as the Brazos River, where 
they camped and gathered about three hundred wild 



22 Texas, the Marvellous 

horses. He undoubtedly had some ulterior object, and 
the Spaniards were very suspicious. One of his party 
deserted, and made statements of what he claimed to be 
the real purpose of the expedition to the Spanish au- 
thorities. On the 2ist of March, 1801, this party was 
attacked by a much superior force of Spanish troops 
somewhere near the site of Waco, and after a fight of 
three hours, in which the leader himself was killed and 
three men wounded, the little band was captured. There 
were in the party at this time only fourteen Americans, 
the others being Spaniards, or Mexicans and negroes. 
A trial of these men was held and the judge ordered their 
release, but the commandant objected, and the matter 
was referred to Spain. The final decision was that one 
out of each five of those actually engaged in fighting was 
to be hanged, and these were to be chosen by lot. Because 
of the death of one, which left only nine surviving, the 
commandant decided that the execution of one would 
suffice. The others were sentenced to hard labour, and 
only one of them is heard of afterwards. 

A decade and a little more passed before any note- 
worthy American expedition was made into Texas. 
This incursion was headed by a Mexican refugee by the 
name of Gutierrez, and a former Lieutenant in the United 
States Army, whose patronymic was Magee. The filibus- 
tering expedition led by Gutierrez numbered one hundred 
and fifty-eight men when it crossed the border in August, 
181 1. The Spanish forces were not taken unawares, 
but they were unprepared and so abandoned Nacogdoches, 
which was the first Spanish outpost. The Spanish com- 
mander notified his government that the people appeared 
to welcome this invasion rather than assist him in re- 
sisting. There seems to be some truth in this, for the 
little force was swelled to five hundred before it left for 



American Settlements in Texas 23 

the interior and, at its maximum, numbered one thou- 
sand. 

The avowed object of Gutierrez was to win Texas 
for the revolution then proceeding in Mexico. The fact 
that the leader himself was a Mexican undoubtedly at- 
tracted many of his own nationality to his command. 
He won a notable victory at La Bahia, where his army 
was besieged by the Spanish general for a number of 
months. Hence it was that, in 1813, they marched to 
Bexar, or San Antonio, and were victorious over Spanish 
forces which greatly outnimibered them, and entered that 
city as victors. Because of the treachery of Gutierrez in 
murdering in cold blood the Spanish General Salcedo, and 
his staff, many of the Americans deserted him. Reverses 
afterwards overtook Gutierrez, and only a little more 
than half of the Americans with him reached American 
soil at Natchitoches. 

Another noted incursion of Americans into Texas was 
under the leadership of James Long, who had been an 
officer in the United States Army and later a merchant 
in Natchez, in which city the expedition was organized. 
The avowed purpose was to aid the Mexicans in Texas, 
but the prospect of material reward undoubtedly was the 
real animus. Seventy-five men marched out of Natchez, 
but their number continually swelled until there were 
four times as many by the time they reached Nacogdo- 
ches. At a meeting gathered together here, Texas was 
declared to be an independent republic, and an admin- 
istrative system was organized. The new Republic was 
short-lived, for the Spanish troops broke up the forces 
of the alien invaders, which had been separated into 
several bodies. Long himself escaped to Louisiana, but 
came back, collecting together the remnants of his 
forces, together with new recruits, and actually pene- 



24 Texas, the Marvellous 

trated as far as La Bahia, which he captured in 1821. 
A short time afterward Long was killed by a Mexican 
soldier while being held as a prisoner, but his men were 
released. 

The expedition led by Long was the last of the filibus- 
tering expeditions by Americans into Texas. In a sense, 
Nolan, Magee and Long, with the men under them, were 
but the advance couriers of American expansion. The 
United States had gradually pushed its settled frontier 
westward to the Mississippi, and had crossed that line 
when Louisiana became a State in 18 12, and Missouri in 
1820. The natural line of further expansion was toward 
the southwest. The filibusterers served the purpose of 
spying out the country, and of paving the way for the 
peaceful invasion that was to follow. The opportune 
attainment of independence by Mexico in 1821 undoubt- 
edly favoured the colonization of Texas by Americans, 
for it created a glow of friendship for Americans, whose 
liberal institutions the Mexicans dreamed of emulating. 
Texas had been laid waste, however, so that nearly all 
signs of civilization between San Antonio and the Sabine 
River had been swept away. It is said that in 1820 the 
total population of Texas, exclusive of Indians, did not 
exceed four thousand. 

Early in the nineteenth century, the United States be- 
gan to appear as a factor in the troubles of Texas. Be- 
fore that the French were the immediate neighbours of 
Spain on the Texas border, and the border had never 
been definitely settled between the two countries. Nacog- 
doches was the easternmost outpost of Spanish settlement, 
while Natchitoches marked the westernmost station of 
the French advance. In 1762 the French monarch, Louis 
XV, ceded all of Louisiana to Spain, and the Spanish 
border was then extended to the Mississippi. In 1800, 



American Settlements in Texas 25 

however, "the Colony or Province of Louisiana with the 
same extent that it now has in the hands of Spain, and 
that it had when France possessed it," was re-ceded to 
France. Three years later France sold Louisiana, with 
the same indefinite limits, to the United States. The 
border, so indefinitely described, immediately caused trou- 
ble. 

As Napoleon had instructed his representative to take 
possession of the Rio Grande, President Jefferson and 
other prominent statesmen were inclined to claim the 
Gulf coast of Texas. But Florida was still more desired, 
and especially West Florida, a narrow strip along the 
coast reaching to the Mississippi. The United States, 
immediately after the purchase of Louisiana, set up claim 
to a considerable section of the eastern portion of Texas, 
but this border was finally adjusted in the bargain that 
was made for Florida in 1 8 19. By this treaty the United 
States surrendered all claims to territory west of the 
Sabine River. But many patriotic citizens believed that 
the government exceeded its constitutional power in alien- 
ating national territory, and it was this belief that made 
possible the demand for the re-annexation of Texas in 
the Democratic platform of 1844. 

One fruitful source of trouble in Texas was the so- 
called Neutral Ground. As finally concluded by informal 
agreement, the strip of Neutral Ground extended from 
the Sabine River to Arroyo Hondo, which was the orig- 
inal western limit of French actual occupation. Although 
fixed in boundaries on the east and west, the limits were 
never defined on the north and the south. Neither the 
United States nor Spain exercised actual sovereignty over 
this Neutral Ground, and it therefore became the refuge 
of all sorts of lawless and desperate men who lived by 
depredating upon caravans. These land pirates formed 



26 Texas, the Marvellous 

buccaneer expeditions, robbed traders, and did many 
other unlawful acts. They had their rules and regula- 
tions, their headquarters and their outposts. Their brav- 
ery and audacity were unsurpassed, and their fidelity to 
each other was inflexible. Both the Spanish and United 
States authorities took measures to stop this lawlessness, 
but it was impossible to exterminate them wholly. This 
Neutral Ground finally fell within the boundaries of 
Louisiana, and therefore of the United States, in 1819, 
and the outlaws were driven out. 

At some time in the future it may be that the real 
significance of the pioneer, and the debt we owe to him, 
will be fully appreciated. We are more inclined to wor- 
ship military heroes than the man who strikes out into 
the primeval wilderness, and who forms the vanguard for 
the civilization that is to follow. 

Our gifted writer and diplomatist, Henry Van Dyke, 
has given expression to this in these words from his 
poem, Texas: A Democratic Ode: 



"Men of mark from old Missouri, 
Men'of daring from Kentucky, 
Tennessee, Louisiana, 
Men of many States and races, 
Bringing wives and children with them, 
Followed up the wooded valleys, 
Spread across the rolling prairies, 
Raising homes and reaping harvests, 
Rude the toil that tried their patience, 
Fierce the fights that proved their courage, 
Rough the stone and tough the timber 
Out of which they built their order! 
Yet they never failed nor faltered. 
And the instinct of their^swarming 
Made them one and kept them working. 
Till their toil was crowned with triumph. 
And the country of the Tejas 
Was the fertile land of Texas." 



American Settlements in Texas 27 

The man who was the first American pioneer in Texas, 
who went there with a truly legitimate purpose and in 
a peaceable manner, was Moses Austin. He was a native 
of Connecticut, and had been trained for the mercantile 
profession. After becoming a partner in a large Phila- 
delphia importing house, he removed to Richmond, Vir- 
ginia, and then to Southwestern Virginia, where he be- 
came a manager of some lead mines. A little later he 
secured a grant of land in Missouri, on which there were 
some lead mines. To this wilderness he moved with 
his family and slaves in 1 797, and built up a pioneer set- 
tlement which grew and flourished in spite of many at- 
tacks from the Indians. Missouri was then a Spanish 
colony, and Austin thus became a Spanish citizen. With 
the Louisiana Purchase, he again became an American 
citizen. Failing in business, he again struck out to lands 
unknown. 

Although in his fifty-fifth year, Moses Austin refused 
to bow beneath the stroke of misfortune, but retained a 
firm mind and a resolute heart. With his son, Stephen F. 
Austin, who was then a young man of promise, he pro- 
posed to establish a colony in Texas. It was in the autumn 
of 1820 that Moses Austin journeyed to San Antonio to 
open negotiations for the proposed colony, while his son 
busied himself in gathering together the immigrants. The 
father made the long journey of more than eight hundred 
miles to San Antonio on horseback. The Spanish Gov- 
ernor, instead of welcoming the proposition, peremptorily 
ordered Austin to leave without delay. As he crossed the 
plaza, however, he accidentally met a man, a German, 
with whom he had spent a night at a country tavern in one 
of the Southern States. Through the influence of this 
German, who was then in the Spanish service, the gov- 
ernor finally approved the petition of Austin that he be 



28 Texas, the Marvellous 

allowed to bring into Texas three hundred settlers from 
the United States.^ 

The meeting with Baron de Bastrop was a chance one, 
but this accident meant a great deal for the future of 
Texas, for Austin had become thoroughly discouraged 
and disheartened. On the return trip the elder Austin 
suffered such hardship, through being robbed and de- 
serted by his companions, that his health was undermined, 
and he died in the following summer. Just before his 
death he received word that his application had been 
granted by the Spanish authorities, and he left an in- 
junction with his son to carry out the project. 

Stephen F. Austin, who deserves the title given him 
by Sam Houston of "Father of Texas," took up the work 
thus left incomplete by his father with tireless energy 
and tmfaltering courage. He was now in his twenty- 
eighth year. At that time he was a circuit judge in the 
Territory of Arkansas. He was well fitted for this work 
of engineering a pioneer colony in a rough and unsettled 
country. He had lived in the midst of a wilderness sur- 
rounded by savage enemies, and it was amidst such 
scenes, where civilization was just beginning to diffuse 
its refinements, that his character was formed. In June, 
1 82 1, with two or three companions, he set out for New 
Orleans and found some Spanish commissioners waiting 
for his father at Natchitoches. Although his father had 
died ten days previous, neither he nor the commissioners 
were aware of this fact. A report reached him after 
he had started for Texas, but he continued his journey on 
to San Antonio. He informed Governor Martinez of the 

'This German was the Baron de Bastrop, a native of Prussia and a 
soldier of fortune. He was then one of the alcaldes of San Antonio. It 
was he who sold, or ceded, to Aaron Burr four hundred thousand acres of 
land, lying on the Washita River, on which Burr expected to plant a colony 
as a nucleus for his expedition to the Southwest. 




STEPHEN F. AUSTIN, FROM AN OLD ETCHING 



American Settlements in Texas 29 

death of his father, and stated that he was ready to carry 
out the contract. 

According to the concession of Austin, each head of a 
family was to have six hundred and forty acres for him- 
self, in addition to three hundred and twenty for his 
wife, one hundred and sixty for each child, and eighty for 
each slave. This was a recognition of slavery as an in- 
stitution. Single men of legal age were to have six hun- 
dred and forty acres each. The first party of settlers 
was conducted by Austin to the Lower Brazos in Decem- 
ber, 1 82 1. The new settlers had many sufferings and 
dangers to undergo during the first couple of years. A 
schooner. The Lively, had been loaded with supplies and 
agricultural implements at New Orleans, and sailed for 
the mouth of the Colorado. She was never heard from 
afterwards. The failure of supplies and game brought 
them to great extremity, and the colonists were too weak 
in numbers to protect themselves from the depredations 
of the Indians. 

The Austin colonists were of a different stripe from 
the earlier American and Spanish immigrants. They may 
have been possessed with wild and adventurous spirits, 
but they were sturdy and honest. Likewise they were ac- 
tive, strong of limb, and inured to hardship from child- 
hood. To them the free air of the prairie and the breath 
of the forest were like the salt sea breeze to the viking of 
old. It warmed their blood, but it stirred up real manli- 
ness. They were a hardy race, among whom hospitality 
and truth were almost universal. Many of these men 
had travelled from beyond the Mississippi in ox-teams, 
amid all the perils and hardships of the wilderness, and 
with scarcely a road or a trail to mark the way. The 
ready rifle supplied game for food and insured protection 
from savages. Every man knew that in his new home 



so Texas, the Marvellous _ 

security of life must depend on a steady nerve and a 
sure aim with his rifle. Some were lost by the wayside, 
but the survivors were of the strongest and hardiest type 
of manhood. Some of them were uneasy when the smoke 
of a neighbour's chimney could be seen from their own 
cabin door. 

Because of some difficulties that had arisen, owing to 
the change of government from Spain to the Republic, 
Austin went to the City of Mexico to have his grant con- 
firmed. This entailed a journey of twelve hundred miles 
or more through a country very much disturbed and un- 
settled. Difficulties were encountered there because of 
the mutations of government which followed the inde- 
pendence of Mexico from Spain. A little later President 
Iturbide proclaimed himself emperor. By these various 
changes Austin was delayed there many months. The 
grant was finally re-affirmed, but changed to read that 
each colonist who engaged in agriculture should receive 
a "labour," about one hundred and seventy-seven acres, 
and each one who followed stock raising should be given 
a square league, or forty-four hundred and twenty-eight 
acres. Austin himself should be granted fifteen square 
leagues and two agricultural allotments for each two 
hundred families he should bring into Texas. 

The revised grant was also changed to read that in 
Texas there should be "no sale or purchase of slaves, 
and that children of slaves bom in the Empire were to 
be free at fourteen years of age." One important pro- 
vision of the concession was that each colonist must be a 
Roman Catholic, or should agree to become such, and 
that all should be of steady habits and good character. 
The religious requirement was practically the only condi- 
tion imposed upon settlers, except that certain improve- 
ments were to be made within two years under pain of 



American Settlements in Texas 31 

forfeiture. They were also obliged to take the oath of 
allegiance to Mexico. The authority granted to Austin 
was almost absolute. He was not only to govern the 
colony, and to administer justice, but was permitted to 
organize a body of militia, commanded by himself, to 
preserve good order and tranquillity. As a legislator he 
drew up an excellent code of laws, although no instruc- 
tions were given him, and as a judge he administered 
these laws faithfully and impartially. Several were ex- 
pelled from the colony under the severest threat of cor- 
poral punishment, if they returned, and in one instance 
he inflicted it. He was given the rank of Lieutenant 
Colonel. Thus he became commander, law-giver, judge 
— an unusual trust for one of alien birth. 

When Austin returned to his colony in 1823, he found 
it almost disintegrated. Many of the original immigrants 
had returned to the States because of the hardships, and 
the new recruits had not arrived. He went at his work 
bravely, and conditions soon began to change. His zeal 
for his colonists knew no bounds. He founded the little 
town of San Felipe de Austin in the summer of that year, 
on the Little Brazos River. It was scarcely pretended 
that all the settlers were Roman Catholics, and the priests 
probably did not scrutinize their conduct very closely. 
The scarcity of priests made much trouble. As no mar- 
riage was legal unless performed by a priest, the system 
of provisional marriages by a bond entered into before 
a notary public was introduced. It was sometimes sev- 
eral years before the opportunity of a priestly sanction 
offered. Then they were joined in wedlock by the whole- 
sale. But many not finding the marriage state to possess 
all the alluring charms which they had believed, burned 
up the bond and were as free as ever. They also paid 
little attention to the proviso concerning slaves. 



32 Texas, the Marvellous 

Almost the entire work of organizing and directing 
this colony devolved upon Austin himself. For five years 
he sustained the burden, and many were the difficulties 
which he had to overcome. When he was relieved from 
the government of the colony of 1828, although still a 
young man, his health had begun to decline. It is quite 
likely that the tense strain of these years abbreviated his 
life, and brought about the early death which befell 
him. 

San Felipe de Austin is almost unknown to-day, and 
yet it still is in existence with a small population. In this 
town, which in the days of Austin's colony was a mere 
collection of rude pioneer dwellings and business houses, 
was held the First Convention of Texas people in 1832, 
and likewise the Consultation of 1835. It was also the 
place where one of the first Texas newspapers, the Tele- 
graph and Texas Register, was published. Four leagues 
of land were set aside originally for the town. Much of 
this land was sold a few years ago and invested, so that 
it enjoys the distinction of being the only municipality in 
Texas conducted without taxation. The revenue is more 
than sufficient to support the city government and the 
schools. The town is now known only as San Felipe, and 
the county is called Austin. 

Mr. F. W. Johnson, who visited San Felipe de Austin 
in its early days, gives a good description of life on the 
frontier in those days: "San Felipe de Austin, though 
the principal town in the colony, was but a small place. 
However, it could boast a tavern, store and blacksmith 
shop and a few American and Mexican families. . . . 
We visited the store, owned and kept by Stephen Rich- 
ardson and Thomas Davis, both good and true men. 
Their stock consisted of two or three barrels of whisky, 
some sugar, coffee, salt and a few remnants of dry goods. 



American Settlements in Texas 33 

in value not exceeding five hundred dollars. Here we 
found a number of the lords of Texas. They seemed to 
be enjoying themselves; some were engaged at a game 
of 'old sledge' or seven-up at cards; others drinking 
whisky, eating pelonce (Mexican sugar), pecans; and all 
talking. We were kindly received, and soon felt ourselves 
at home. Here, in the course of conversation, we heard 
the words caballada, corral, rieto, mustang, etc., etc. — all 
of which were Greek to us, though we had heard the same 
words used time and again, but felt too diffident to ask 
their meaning." 

Agriculture was conducted in a primitive way. The 
same writer gives the following account of the methods 
of the colonists : "We arrived at the busy season of pre- 
paring for and planting. Those of the settlers who had 
sufficient teams were breaking prairie, others were clear- 
ing what was called weed prairies, and bottom lands 
sparsely timbered, but with a thick growth of weeds. 
When the groimd is cleared holes are made at proper dis- 
tances with a stick, and a corn-seed put in the holes and 
covered. This done, it is left to grow and ripen 
and received no other work, except to knock down 
the weeds; the ground thus prepared and planted will 
yield twenty-five or thirty, sometimes forty, bushels per 
acre." 

Even while Austin was in the City of Mexico, trying 
to secure a confirmation of his concession, a number of 
other persons were there seeking to promote similar en- 
terprises. It was not until 1824, however, that a general 
law was passed under which such colonies could be 
formed. This law simply laid down certain provisions 
and left the actual granting of concessions to the states. 
It provided that no colonies should be located within ten 
leagues of the coast and twenty leagues of the boundary 



34 Texas, the Marvellous 

of a foreign country, without the consent of the general 
government, and that preference should be given to Mexi- 
can citizens. 

In accordance with this law the State of Coahuila and 
Texas passed a colonization law March 24, 1825. This 
gave the opportunity of the empresarios, as the promoters 
were called, to enter this rich and new field. Each em- 
presario was to receive five leagues and five "labours" for 
each hundred families introduced. Families engaged in 
farming at once received a labour of land. If they also 
engaged in raising cattle, this grant was enlarged to one 
league. Unmarried men received one-fourth this amount, 
but upon marriage were given the other three-fourths. 
If they espoused Mexican women, they received an extra 
premium of one- fourth more than the other settlers. A 
small payment in money was required. For ten years the 
settlements were to be free from all contributions to the 
state, except in case of an invasion by an enemy. When 
the towns were established it was provided that great care 
should be taken "to lay ofif the streets straight, giving 
them a direction from north to south, and from east to 
west, when the site will permit it." 

In a short time the whole map of Texas was covered 
over with the claims of the empresarios. Austin himself 
obtained four additional concessions, permitting seven- 
teen hundred families. In many cases the name empre- 
sario became almost synonymous with that of swindler. 
Everything connected with the settlement of the country 
seemed to be objects of barter and speculation. Hayden 
Edwards received concessions to settle eight hundred 
families. Benjamin R. Milam obtained authority to colo- 
nize two hundred families, David G. Burnett three hun- 
dred families, and Lorenzo de Zavala five himdred fami- 
lies, along with scores of others. Some of these grants 



American Settlements in Texas 35 

were annulled, and others were transferred. A number 
of the contractors failed to introduce a single settler. 

Immigrants did not come in so rapidly as might appear 
from the number and magnitude of the grants. In 1827, 
the population was estimated at only ten thousand, and, 
in 1830, it had reached only twenty thousand. This, how- 
ever, was an increase of probably five hundred per cent 
in less than a decade. Most of the grants came to naught, 
because of the failure of the promoters to fulfil the con- 
ditions. There were, however, a number of colonies ac- 
tually established, but Austin's colony still remained the 
predominant one, and, up to the time of the Revolution, 
continued the most influential element among the Ameri- 
cans in Texas. 

The tide of immigration continued to flow into Texas, 
and some of the colonies became quite prosperous. The 
Mexican authorities at length became affrighted at the in- 
creasing possibility of Anglo-American domination. 
They perceived in it a menace to their own security. 
Efforts on the part of the United States to purchase 
either the whole or a part of Texas likewise excited ap- 
prehension in Mexico. In 1829, a decree was issued for- 
bidding slavery within the Republic, and this was directed 
toward Texas, which was the only Mexican state in which 
actual slavery was practised. A law was passed for- 
bidding further colonization in the border states of 
Mexico by nations adjacent, or the importation of slaves, 
and this enactment was also directed at the American 
colonization of Texas. 

An abortive revolution had its origin in Nacogdoches. 
It amounted to little, but it was indicative of the general 
unrest that was arising. It began at Nacogdoches, prob- 
ably because that place was so remote from the Spanish 
settlements, and was more overrun by intruders than 



Texas, the Marvellous 



any of the other settlements. Its proximity to the Neu- 
tral Ground brought in many characters who were un- 
willing to submit to any laws or restraints limiting their 
absolute freedom of action. One, Hayden Edwards, had 
obtained a concession for colonizing an extensive terri- 
tory here, although the authority granted to him was not 
so broad as that extended to Austin. Edwards under- 
took to assume powers not granted to him. This brought 
him in collision with the government of the State. It 
looked to him, also, as though the favours were all granted 
to Mexicans. Much confusion arose over titles that had 
been granted to settlers, who had fled several years ago, 
when Nacogdoches became depopulated at the approach 
of royalist troops. A hundred or more of these claim- 
ants of all ages, colours and nationalities had returned to 
the Edwards settlement. Old titles were manufactured 
by the authorities to order. 

On December i6th, 1826, Benjamin W. Edwards, 
brother of Hayden Edwards, and during the absence of 
the latter, rode into Nacogdoches at the head of fifteen 
men and proclaimed an independent republic, which was 
named Fredonia. They took possession of the Old Stone 
Fort, and organized a so-called government. They made 
an offensive treaty against Mexico with the Cherokee 
Indians, who dwelt near there. Letters were written to 
many other leaders of colonies, urging them to unite in 
a common cause. Austin opposed this movement; he 
not only used his influence, but furnished some soldiers 
from his colony, for the Mexican government. The in- 
surrection was not suppressed until there had been some 
actual fighting. Eleven white men and nine Indians op- 
posed the forces sent to suppress them, and in the con- 
flict that followed, one man of their party was wounded 
and one of the Mexican forces was killed. This was the 



American Settlements in Texas 37 

one battle of the Fredonian War. On the approach of 
Mexican forces sent against them by the government at 
San Antonio, the troops of Edwards disbanded and fled 
to the United States. The Mexicans entered Nacog- 
doches in triumph, with the honours of a bloodless vic- 
tory. 

In the hope of giving the reader a more vivid idea of 
the hardships endured by the early American settlers in 
Texas than any general description can convey, I hereby 
subjoin extracts from a letter written by a member of 
Austin's Colony: 

"Colorado River, Coahuila and Texas. 

"December i, 1823. 

"Since I last wrote, our sufferings have been very 
great for want of provisions. . . . There have been a 
great many new settlers come on this fall, and those 
who have not been accustomed to himting in the woods 
for support, are obliged to suffer. . . . Those of us who 
have no families of our own reside with some of the 
families of the settlement. We remain here, notwith- 
standing the scarcity of provisions, to assist in protect- 
ing the settlement. We are obliged to go out in the 
morning, a party of us, to himt food, leaving a part of 
the men at home to guard the settlement from Indians, 
who are very hostile to us. Indeed, we dare not go out 
and hunt except in companies, as we are obliged to keep 
on a lookout, lest the savages fall upon us ; and one can- 
not hunt and watch too. Game is now so scarce that 
we often hunt all day for a deer or a turkey, and return 
at night empty handed. It would make your heart sick 
to see the poor little half-naked children, who have noth- 
ing to eat during the day, watch for the return of the 



38 Texas, the Marvellous 

hunters at night. ... If the hunters return with a deer 
or turkey, the children are almost wild with delight, while 
on the other hand, they suddenly stop in their course, 
their countenances fall, the deep, bitter tears well up in 
their eyes and roll down their pale cheeks. 'Tis truly 
heart-rending to see us return home after a hard day's 
hunt without any game, knowing, as we do, that the 
women and children are entirely without food, and can 
have nothing until we find it in our hunt. No one can 
know our sufferings, or even imagine our feelings, unless 
they have been in similar situations. ... It is surpris- 
ing to see how bravely the delicate females bear up 
under their sufferings without a murmur or complaint. 
'Tis only by their looks they show their feelings. 
When we seem the least discouraged, they cheer us with 
kind words, and looks, and strive to appear cheerful 
and happy. They do more when we are worried out 
with toil and fatigue — they take our guns in their hands 
and assist us in standing guard. . . . Were it not for 
the Tonkawa Indians, a small tribe who are friendly to 
us and supply us with dressed deerskins, we should be 
almost entirely destitute of clothing. . . . The common 
dress of men and children is made of buckskin, and 
even the women are often forced to wear the same. 

"Your affectionate friend, 

"W. B. Dewees." 



CHAPTER III 

THE STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE 

The revolution which had its centre at Nacogdoches, 
and in which the Fredonian RepubHc was proclaimed, 
proved abortive because the hour had not yet arrived. It 
required almost another decade before sentiment was 
crystallized to such an extent that a declaration of inde- 
pendence from Mexico was declared. In the meantime, 
under the liberal immigration policy of Mexico, Ameri- 
cans were thronging in by hundreds under the numerous 
promoters, or empresarios, of colonies. This accretion 
of the Anglo-Saxons must inevitably result in a separa- 
tion from the Mexican states, for they would not submit 
to such an arbitrary government as Mexico possessed, 
especially when they greatly outnumbered the Spanish- 
speaking population. 

The persistent efforts of the government at Washing- 
ton to expand its territories toward the Rio Grande 
gradually aroused the suspicions of Mexico. In 1827, 
a million dollars was offered to extend its frontier to that 
boundary, but Mexico refused to consider any proffers. 
Another cause of suspicion was the comparative freedom 
of the colonies of Americans from attacks by the In- 
dians, while these hostiles still continued their depreda- 
tions against the Mexicans. This circumstance induced 
the authorities to believe that the colonists had some 
secret understanding with the red men. It was falla- 
cious, but this suspicion was the genesis of a great deal 
39 



40 Texas, the Marvellous 

of the trouble of the colonists. It induced repressive 
legislation against them. Had it not been that Mexico 
was in a perpetual state of revolution during these early 
years of her existence as a Republic, the colonists would 
either have been coerced or driven from the province 
before their strength was so great. Austin himself re- 
mained constant in his loyalty to the Mexican govern- 
ment, and endeavoured in every possible way to remain 
aloof from the party strife. 

The decree abolishing slavery throughout Mexico was 
the first legislation that aroused general opposition among 
the Americans. There were probably not more than a 
thousand slaves in Texas at this time, but it was the 
principle involved. At the earnest representations of 
Austin, who feared that this interdiction would mean 
ruin for his colonies, Texas was exempted from the 
operation of this decree. Then followed a measure to 
establish Mexican colonists on the border, and also to 
prohibit the entry of foreigners from the northern bor- 
ders without passports from Mexican agents. Convicts 
were also given the privilege of citizenship when their 
terms of punishment had expired, thus introducing a class 
of citizens who were utterly repugnant to the American 
colonists. The most irritating provisions, however, were 
those which stopped further colonizations, and that which 
forbade the introduction of more slaves into Texas. To 
enforce these laws considerable forces were despatched 
to Texas, and a number of military posts were estab- 
lished. 

The principal port on the Gulf coast of Texas was 
Anahuac, at the mouth of Trinity River. An officer, 
an American by the name of Bradbum, was placed in 
charge of this port, and his methods of enforcing the 
laws aroused the general opposition of the colonists. He 



The Struggle for Independence 41 

conducted himself with unwarranted license and bru- 
tality. The period of six years allowed for the free entry 
of supplies had expired, and it required a judicious policy 
to inaugurate the collection of duties. This was precisely 
the quality that this officer lacked. He became little 
more than a petty tyrant. 

The colonists had consistently continued to evade 
the payment of duties in every way possible. In retalia- 
tion the commander at Anahuac placed under martial law 
a ten league strip of the coast, and declared Anahuac, 
a port so shallow that boats drawing more than six feet 
could not enter, the sole port of entry. In the execution 
of his duties, William B. Travis, afterwards of Alamo 
fame, and some other prominent men were arrested and 
imprisoned for alleged insubordination. Aroused by this 
act of violence, the colonists arose in force and marched 
on Anahuac. Bradburn promised to release the prison- 
ers, but disregarded his word. Some desultory firing 
occurred, but there was no real battle. Bradburn was 
finally succeeded in command, and the Texans were de- 
livered to their compatriots. 

None realized better than the colonists that this violent 
act would mean serious trouble, if no plausible explana- 
tion could be offered. Santa Anna was then just scintil- 
lating upon the Mexican horizon as an opponent of the 
Bustamente government, so the men of the Anahuac 
expedition promulgated what are designated as the Tmtle 
Bayou Resolutions. The resolutions elaborated upon 
the devotion of the colonists to the Constitution of 1824, 
and affirmed their unswerving support of the gallant 
chieftain. General Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna. It 
then set forth in detail the many alleged grievances of the 
Texans. It was indeed a politic move, and served these 
men, who otherwise would have been classed as revolu- 



^ Texas, the Marvellous 

tionists, an excellent purpose. The Turtle Bayou Reso- 
lutions so aroused the people that they decided to expel all 
the Mexican soldiers. Anahuac was captured after a 
spirited resistance. Velasco capitulated, and the Mexi- 
cans withdrew. The people of the municipality of Na- 
cogdoches marched on their fortress and summoned the 
commander to declare for the Constitution of 1824, sur- 
render, or fight. A fight followed in which the Texans 
were victorious. Thus all the Anglo-American settle- 
ments were delivered from the military, although there 
were still garrisons at the Mexican settlements of Goliad 
and San Antonio. 

Santa Anna soon overthrew his opponents, and the 
Texans then became patriots and not revolutionists. 
When Santa Anna's commander and personal repre- 
sentative, Mejia, visited Texas, he was everywhere feted 
by the Anglo-Americans and treated in every way as an 
honoured guest. For a brief period the name of Santa 
Anna was much extolled in Texas, and the colonists 
could not say enough in praise of his work and his char- 
acter. But they had no conception of the man. 

In August, 1832, a convention was called of the peo- 
ple of Texas. More than fifty delegates assembled at 
San Felipe, representing practically all the departments 
of the province with the exception of Bexar. In this 
convention it was particularly disclaimed that any effort 
was being made at separation from Mexico. A number 
of subjects were considered, and resolutions were adopted 
urging certain requests for the local government of the 
province. Among these was a demand that Texas be dis- 
united from Coahuila. Reading between the lines, how- 
ever, one can see that this convention was just as solici- 
tous for any encroachment against its prerogatives, as 
it was to discharge its obligations to Mexico. Although 




GENERAL SANTA ANNA, FROM AN OLD ETCHING 



The Struggle for Independence 43 

Austin was elected President, a third of the votes were 
cast for William H. Wharton, who was less conservative 
by far than his successful rival. 

The Mexican authorities uniformly condemned this 
convention. "I deem it my duty," wrote Santa Anna 
himself, "to call special attention of the President to 
the condition of Texas. Satisfied I am that the foreign- 
ers who have introduced themselves in that province, have 
a strong tendency to declare themselves independent of 
the republic; and that all their remonstrances and com- 
plaints are but disguised to that end." The sagacious 
Mexican recognized the democratic tendencies of the 
settlers who came from the United States, and feared 
the result. In 1833 a second convention was convoked 
at San Felipe, and new delegates chosen. This time 
Wharton was elected chairman. The convention did 
little more than re-enact the resolutions and memorials 
of the preceding year. In the petition for separation, 
however, it went further. A constitution was dravra up, 
which was distinctly American. The preamble reads as 
follows: "We, the people of Texas, being capable of 
figuring as a state in the manner contemplated in the 
second article of the decree of the general congress of 
the nation, of the 7th of May, 1824, do ordain the fol- 
lowing constitution; and do mutually agree with each 
other to form ourselves into a full and independent 
state of the Mexican Confederacy, by the name of the 
state of Texas." 

There is no question that in the months following, 
the revolutionary impulse was gradually gaining strength. 
Austin proceeded to Mexico alone to urge the petition 
of the Texans for reforms of administration. He had a 
better knowledge of the Mexican government and also 
of the Spanish language than his compatriots, but he 



44 Texas, the Marvellous 

undertook the mission with misgivings. In the statistics 
which Austin carried with him he claimed the total popu- 
lation, including Indians, to be forty-six thousand and 
five hundred. The organized municipalities were Bexar, 
four thousand, Goliad, two thousand three hundred, 
Gonzales, one thousand six hundred, Austin, twelve thou- 
sand six hundred. Liberty, four thousand five hundred, 
Brazoria, four thousand eight hundred, and Nacogdoches, 
sixteen thousand seven hundred. It must not be forgot- 
ten, as elsewhere suggested, that the Spanish municipality 
covered a large territory, and included numerous small 
towns and settlements. We would designate it as a 
county. He reported that there were many cotton-gins, 
and a number of saw-mills and grist-mills, some propelled 
by water power and others by oxen or horses. "Fat 
beeves," says he, "of from twenty to thirty arrobas (an 
arroba is about twenty-five pounds), are worth from 
eight to ten dollars. Fat hogs of from eight to twelve 
arrobas are worth three and a half to five dollars each." 

Austin laboured assiduously for half a year in an effort 
to accomplish his mission, but he was compelled to de- 
part with the matter still unsettled. The Mexicans 
feared (and not without reason) American domination 
if Texas was separated from Coahuila. After his de- 
parture from the City of Mexico, which was done openly, 
the acting president decided to have Austin arrested, and 
he was captured at Saltillo on his return journey and 
conducted back to the Mexican capital. He was detained 
there for a year and a half, several months of which was 
in close confinement, or incommunicado. This means 
that the prisoner is not allowed to communicate with 
any one, not even an attorney. It is indeed a wonderful 
system of jurisprudence. 

"My room," wrote Austin in a letter to his brother, 



The Struggle for Independence 45 

"is about fifteen feet by thirteen — very high ceiling — 
two doors, one flush with the outside surface of the wall, 
the other near the inside surface and within the wall, 
which is about three feet thick, of large hewn stone. 
The latter door has an oblong hole large enough to admit 
a plate, the other is solid. Both were always locked 
and bolted until yesterday. No windows, a very small 
skylight in the roof which barely afforded light to read 
on very clear days, when the sun was high, say from ten 
to three o'clock. Quite free from damp except such as 
would naturally result from the want of free circula- 
tion of air." 

During this residence in Mexico, Austin accomplished 
a part of his commission, but not the principal object. 
Certain reforms in the administration of Texas were 
granted, but it was not permitted a separate government. 
Among the concessions was an act legalizing the use of 
English in official documents, and a greater degree of 
local self-government was granted for the Anglo-Ameri- 
can portion of Texas. Four new municipalities were 
created. Excitement and dissatisfaction in Texas con- 
tinued to increase, however, and it was accelerated by 
the long detention of Austin, the man who had been 
most considerate toward the home government. Several 
thousand Mexican troops were despatched to Texas, and 
this augmented the inquietude. As a result the colonists 
began to organize for self-defence, believing that a san- 
guinary struggle was before them. 

When Austin reached Texas, in September, 1835, two 
and a half years after his departure from Brazoria, the 
leaders were all anxious to know his opinion. He ex- 
pressed himself plainly in favour of the upholding of the 
constitutional rights of Texas and in favour of a general 
convention. His feeling toward Mexico had undergone 



46 Texas, the Marvellous 

a radical transformation. Every one seemed to sense 
that war was imminent, and preparation went forward 
in many places with vigour. General Ugartechea had been 
ordered to Texas as the military commandant, and sev- 
eral thousand troops were under his command. The gen- 
eral impression among the colonists was that these troops, 
who were ostensibly sent to protect the settlements from 
Indians, were in reality intended to overawe and coerce 
the colonists. A proclamation disclaiming such a pur- 
pose did not alleviate the situation. Indignation meet- 
ings were held in nearly all the municipalities. Local 
committees of safety were organized, and volunteer com- 
panies for defence were banded together. As is usual 
among pioneers, every one possessed a weapon, and it 
was not difficult to gather equipment for soldiers. Even 
before members of the Consultation were elected, some 
blood had been spilled. In June, 1835, Travis, at the 
head of a small body of volunteers, had marched against 
and received the surrender of the garrison of Anahuac. 
But this victory was a bloodless one. 

At Gonzales there was a small cannon, which had been 
furnished by the authorities of Bexar, and the Mexican 
commander demanded that the people give it up. The 
people claimed it as a gift and the demand was refused 
in a curt American way, which implied that if he desired 
the cannon he might come after it. As a result a cavalry 
troop of some hundred was sent to take it. The advance 
guard was captured by a ruse without a shot being fired. 
Large reinforcements arrived a few days later with posi- 
tive orders to take the six-pounder. The answer of the 
Texans was "come and take it." The battle had scarcely 
begun before the Mexicans were in precipitate retreat. 
The cannon itself was a small affair, and had never been 
used by the settlers as they had no balls to fit it. Further- 



The Struggle for Independence 47 

more, they did not even understand how to shoot it if 
the occasion offered. They concluded to try it, however, 
before the Mexicans arrived. A gunsmith of the village 
hammered out a ball on his anvil to fit the cannon, and it 
was loaded at his shop. The gun was aimed at a small 
sycamore tree about three hundred yards distant. The 
tree was hit and considerably splintered. The gun was 
then loaded with slugs in anticipation of the approach 
of the enemy. During the skirmish it was discharged 
several times, as the gunsmith had provided an apronful 
of slugs for the purpose. 

The engagement at Gonzales did much to consolidate 
the factions among the colonists. Resistance had become 
a reality — guns had been fired. W. H. Wharton issued 
a circular for all colonists to hasten to Gonzales "armed 
and equipped for war even to the knife." This circular 
was headed in the following striking way : 

Freemen of Texas. 

To arms! ! ! To arms! ! 

Now's the day, and Now's the hour! 

A little army of Texans was organized to prosecute a 
campaign against Bexar. On the way they captured 
Goliad, where they obtained possession of considerable 
money and much needed arms and supplies. This little 
army, which had now increased to three hundred and fifty 
volunteers, with Stephen F. Austin himself as comman- 
der, proceeded against Bexar. The reduction of this 
town required a campaign of nearly two months. A 
detachment of forces under Colonel Bowie and Captain 
Fannin, who had been sent forward to select a position 
for the main army, defeated a force of Mexicans near 
Mission Concepcion. A short time afterwards occurred 
what is known as the Grass Fight. The horses of the 



48 Texas, the Marvellous 

Mexicans were in need of fodder, so that a party of 
soldiers was sent out under cover of darkness to cut 
grass and bring it in. They succeeded in loading about 
fifty burros with the prairie grass, but they were discov- 
ered by the enemy. The Texans at once attacked and 
the Mexicans commenced a rapid retreat. The grass- 
laden burros kept the road, braying at every jump, and 
the Mexicans fired back as they ran. A rescuing party 
was also put to flight. It was a brilliant victory and 
aided in discouraging the besieged. 

After several weeks the siege appeared to be useless. 
The Texans possessed three cannon but no suitable am- 
munition for them. About the only cannon balls they 
had were those fired by the Mexicans. "It was quite 
amusing," says a report, "to see two or three or half a 
dozen in chase of the balls, which, when recovered, were 
from time to time returned in compliment to the enemy." 
On the 3rd of December, a council of war was held, and 
it was resolved that the army should retire and go into 
winter quarters either at Goliad or Gonzales. But the 
army did not approve of this delay. 

"Who will go into San Antonio with old Ben Milam?" 
shouted Benjamin R. Milam, in a moment of enthusiasm, 
as he made a ringing call for volunteers to follow him 
in an assault upon the city. Many shouted "I will," 
whereupon they were requested to fall into line. When 
finally assembled at dark for the storming, they num- 
bered exactly three hundred and one. These were 
divided into two divisions. The attack began just be- 
fore dawn; the Texans carried one barricade after 
another, dislodging the enemy in hand-to-hand fighting. 
At last General Cos hoisted the white flag, after the 
fourth day, and the garrison began negotiations for a 
surrender. The Mexicans were allowed to march out 



The Struggle for Independence 49 

and return beyond the Rio Grande. Milam himself 
was killed, but the Texan losses were small in compari- 
son with those of the Mexicans. This victory removed 
all Mexican armed forces from Texas. 

Milam was a native of Kentucky, and was at this 
time about forty-five years of age. He was six feet 
high and a splendid specimen of manhood. He had 
distinguished himself in the War of 1812, and had 
likewise fought in the Mexican struggles for 'freedom 
from Spain. Because of opposition to Iturbide, how- 
ever, he was thrown into prison at Monterey. Escaping 
•from that prison, he came to Texas and enlisted with 
the Texans. His name is justly honoured by Texas and 
the Texans. 

It was during the siege of Bexar that the Consultation 
gathered. The term consultation was chosen, as the word 
"convention" in the minds of some savoured too much 
of revolution. It was difficult to get a quorum together, 
for so many of the members were taking part in the fight- 
ing at once place or another. It was originally called for 
October i6th, 1835, but because of lack of a quorum 
was postponed until November ist. It was finally or- 
ganized two days later. Among the members of this 
body were some of the ablest and best sons of Texas. 
Like our forefathers, who composed the revolutionary 
congresses, these men assembled and were animated by 
the loftiest impulses. Indignant at the misrule of Mex- 
ico, they were determined to establish a liberal govern- 
ment which they might leave as a proud heritage to 
their children. Although their election had been informal, 
yet the stress of feeling was such that the best men were 
undoubtedly sent. It was not a struggle for place. 

A committee of a dozen members, one from each 
municipality, was appointed to draw up a Declaration 



50 Texas, the Marvellous 

defining the attitude of the Texans. A minority, even 
at that time, favoured a Declaration of Independence for 
Texas. A majority of tv^'o-thirds, hov^rever, favoured pro- 
nouncing for the Constitution of 1824. Hence it was 
that this Consultation averred that the Texans had taken 
up arms "in defence of the republican institutions of the 
Federal Constitution of Mexico of 1824." The battle 
flags carried by the Texans in their engagements had 
printed on them in large figures "1824." A provisional 
government was provided for by this Consultation, estab- 
lishing both a civil and a military administration. The 
powers were not very clearly defined, and a great deal 
of confusion soon resulted. 

Henry Smith,^ one of the extreme radicals, was 
elected governor by the Consultation, and Sam Houston, 
who begins to be very prominent, was made Major-Gen- 
eral of the armies of Texas "to be raised." Stephen 
F. Austin, with two others, was made a commissioner 
to the United States. Governor Smith well stated the 
difficulties confronting Texas in^his first message as fol- 
lows : "You have to call system from chaos ; to start the 
wheels of government, clogged and impeded as they are 
by conflicting interests, and by discordant materials. 
Without funds, without the munitions of war; with an 

* Henry Smith was a native of Kentucky, and came to Texas in 182 1 
Owing to a serious misunderstanding with'the Executive Council, an effort 
was made by the latter body to depose him as Governor. The controversy 
was still imsettled when the Provisional Government was displaced by the 
Government ad interim. He served as Secretary of the Treasury under 
Houston and filled the position with marked ability. A few years later he 
emigrated to California, where he died in rSss, at the very time he was mak- 
ing preparations to return to Texas. The origin of the Lone Star is traced 
to Governor Smith. It happened that the buttons on his coat had the 
impress of a five-pointed star. For want of a seal, one of the buttons was 
cut off and used. A little later the flag of the Lone Star was designed, 
although it passed through several evolutions before the final adoption of 
a flag by the Congress in 1839. 



The Struggle for Independence 51 

army in the field contending against a powerful foe. 
These are the auspices under which we are forced to 
make a beginning." 

Peace and harmony quickly vanished, for trouble 
early arose between the Governor and the Council, which 
was a sort of advisory body. The principal variance of 
opinion was over the advisability of despatching an ex- 
pedition against Matamoras, on the west side of the Rio 
Grande. So many complications arose from this con- 
troversy between the two branches of the government 
that the border defences were left unprovided for. At 
no time prior to San Jacinto did the regular army exceed 
one hundred, although Houston had made an impassioned 
appeal for five hundred men. Finances were also trouble- 
some. Some donations were received from the United 
States, but the Texans themselves possessed little wealth 
save in land. Austin offered his whole estate to be 
mortgaged as the Consultation saw fit. Fannin tendered 
thirty-six slaves, and numerous other patriotic proffers 
of horses and land were made by the colonists. A loan 
was finally floated in New Orleans and New York by 
pledges of land. 

Alarmed by rumours of a Mexican invasion to recover 
Bexar, Lieutenant-Colonel Neill, who was in command 
of the Alamo, sent an urgent request for re-inforcements. 
General Houston despatched Colonel Bowie with a small 
force to his aid. Instructions were given by Houston to 
demolish the fortifications and carry off the artillery. 
Governor Smith despatched Travis with the men in his 
detachment. Soon afterwards Neill, because of ill 
health, left for home, and Travis remained in charge 
of the troops. This tragic event is treated quite fully 
in another part of this work. 

A body of troops numbering about four hundred, under 



52 Texas, the Marvellous 

Colonel Fannin, marched to the old town of Goliad. It 
had been ascertained that Mexican forces were invading 
Texas in considerable numbers, and Fannin awaited 
them at the fortress of Goliad. Houston sent orders to 
Fannin to destroy the fortress and retreat to Victoria. 
After a few days' delay, F'annin began his retrogression. 
Before this time his forces had been weakened by small 
detachments sent to Refugio and San Patricio in order 
to rescue the citizens of those places. None of these 
men returned. Most of them were captured and shot. 
Several months later the bones of some of these un- 
fortunates were discovered still tied to the trees where 
they had been murdered. Word was received from 
Colonel Travis of his desperate plight in the Alamo, and 
Fannin first started for San Antonio. At a council of 
officers, however, it was decided that it was impossible 
to reach them in time for succour. The heaviest guns 
were spiked, and only the small cannon taken along in 
order to facilitate his movement. Five days' rations 
and as much ammunition as he could carry were dis- 
tributed to each man. But the impedimenta was all 
drawn by oxen, and that rendered progress slow. The 
entire force consisted of about three hundred, including 
twenty-five mounted men. The troops were halted in 
an open prairie to rest, and here it was that the Mexicans 
overtook them. 

"Here come the Mexicans!" was the cry that spread 
over the camp. Fannin arranged his mer^ in a hollow 
square, with lines three deep in order to repel the cavalry 
charge. The artillery were stationed at the four angles 
of the square. The American cavalry made a recon- 
naissance, but were cut off from the main body and com- 
pelled to flee. This was a serious loss. Charges from 
three directions were simultaneously made by the Mexi- 



The Struggle for Independence 53 

cans, who numbered more than a thousand. The assault 
was deadly, and bayonet met bayonet in some places, 
but the Mexicans were finally compelled to retreat. The 
fight then continued in a desultory way until sunset. 
Anticipating a renewal of the conflict in the morning, 
the Texans dug trenches and threw up earthen mounds 
for protection. Fannin desired to retreat while this 
might be done under cover of darkness, but the men ex- 
pressed an unwillingness to leave their seventy wounded 
comrades. 

During the night three men deserted, but every other 
man stuck to his post, determined upon victory or death. 
Before the sun had fairly risen the Mexican forces were 
astir and preparing for another attack. Large rein- 
forcements had reached them during the night. Ammu- 
nition was now running short with the Texan forces. 
The Mexican commander sent a flag of truce asking for 
surrender "at discretion," in order to avoid the shedding 
of more blood. Fannin refused this demand, stating 
that he "would fight as long as there was a man left to 
fire a gun before he would surrender on such terms." 
Then General Urrea himself advanced and was met by 
Colonel Fannin, and the terms of capitulation were 
agreed upon. These were that the Texans should either 
be held as prisoners of war or liberated on parole. These 
terms were reduced to writing in both Spanish and Eng- 
lish, and the English translation was read by Colonel 
Fannin to his men, according to Mr. Duval in Early 
Times in Texas. Santa Anna afterwards claimed that 
the surrender was "at discretion." 

The prisoners were conducted back to Goliad, and held 
in close confinement for several days in the old mission 
and the walls enclosing it. They were so crowded that 
they could scarcely recline at night, and food was very 



54 Texas, the Marvellous 

scanty. No intimation was given as to their final fate. 
"On the morning of the 27th of March," says J. C. 
Duval, one of the survivors, "a Mexican officer came 
to us and ordered us to get ready for a march. He told 
us we were to be liberated on 'parole,' and that arrange- 
ments had been made to send us to New Orleans on 
board of vessels then at Copano. This, you may be 
sure, was joyful news to us, and we lost no time in mak- 
ing preparations to leave our uncomfortable quarters. 
When all was ready we were formed into three divisions 
and marched out under a strong guard. 

"One of our divisions was taken down the road lead- 
ing to the lower ford of the river, one upon the road to 
San Patricio, and the division to which my company 
was attached along the road leading to San Antonio. 
A strong guard accompanied us, marching in double 
files on both sides of our column. When about half a 
mile above town, a halt was made and the guard on the 
side next the river filed around to the opposite side. 
Hardly had this manoeuvre been executed, when I heard 
a heavy firing of musketry in the directions taken by 
the other two divisions. Some one near me exclaimed, 
'Boys! they are going to shoot us!' and at the same in- 
stant I heard the clicking of musket locks all along the 
Mexican line. I turned to look, and, as I did so, the 
Mexicans fired upon us, killing probably one hundred 
out of the one hundred and fifty men in the division. 
We were in double file and I was in the rear rank. The 
man in front of me was shot dead, and in falling he 
knocked me down. I did not get up for a moment, and 
when I rose to my feet I found that the whole Mexican 
line had charged over me, and were in hot pursuit of 
those who had not been shot and who were fleeing to- 
wards the river about five hundred yards distant." 



The Struggle for Independence 55 

It would be hard to conceive of anything more brutal 
than this wholesale massacre of prisoners of war in this 
uncivilized way. The number of prisoners taken out to 
be shot like so many animals numbered three hundred 
and seventy-one. Twenty-seven were fortunate enough 
to escape in the confusion. The experiences of some 
of these men are almost past belief. Colonel Fannin, 
who was incapacitated by a wound, was not among the 
number. He was soon notified, however, to prepare for 
death. He was taken out to the square, seated on a 
bench with his eyes blindfolded, and shot to death. 
Thus died a brave son of old Georgia. The greater num- 
ber of the men who were thus massacred were citizens 
of the United States, who had enlisted in the Texas army, 
and for that reason the Mexicans claimed, as a palliation 
for the deed, that they were filibusterers. This fact did 
not lessen the potency of the battle cry afterwards used : 
"Remember Goliad!" Together with "Remember the 
Alamo !" it served to thrill and stimulate the brave Tex- 
ans at the Battle of San Jacinto. 

In the city of Goliad, in Fannin Park, there stands a 
noble marble shaft. On the north side is engraved the 
battle cry of San Jacinto, "Remember the Alamo! Re- 
member Goliad!"; on the west side, "Independence de- 
clared March 2, A. D. 1836, consummated April 21, A. D. 
1836"; on the south, "Fannin; erected in memory of 
Fannin and his comrades," and on the east, "Massacred 
March 27, A. D. 1836." This forms at once an epitome 
of the history of the struggle for liberty in Texas. 

In obedience to a resolution by the Council, new mem- 
bers of a Convention were elected by the various munic- 
ipalities. They were to be "clothed with ample, unlimi- 
ted, or plenary powers as to the form of government to 
be adopted: provided, that no constitution formed shall 



56 Texas, the Marvellous 

go into effect until the same be submitted to the people 
and confirmed by a majority thereof." This body con- 
vened on the first day of March, 1836, at the town of 
Washington, on the Brazos River. In a session of only 
seventeen days it accomplished work that has passed 
into history. It brought into existence the Republic of 
Texas. New men of the more radical type were in the 
ascendency in this body. Sam Houston was a delegate, 
but Austin was in the United States on business for the 
government. 

It seemed to be a foregone conclusion that the inde- 
pendence of Texas would be promulgated. If there had 
been any uncertainty about it the news of the Alamo 
tragedy, which reached this body while in session, would 
have removed it. Everything now seemed to demand a 
formal declaration of independence. Public opinion had 
now been thoroughly aroused. The first work of the con- 
vention was to appoint a committee to draft a declara- 
tion of independence, which was reported on the follow- 
ing day. As finally approved, it set forth a number of 
causes of complaint which Texas had to make against 
Mexico. This instrument, which is now preserved in 
the State's archives, bears fifty-eight signatures. It in- 
cludes nearly all of the greatest men of that day in 
Texas. 

The next work of the convention was directed toward 
framing a Constitution. The Constitution of Texas was 
designed after the Constitution of the United States, 
only conforming to a single state instead of a federation 
of states. On the slavery question the Constitution pro- 
vided that persons of colour, who had been slaves, should 
remain in bondage. Congress was forbidden to inhibit 
immigrants from bringing slaves with them, or to eman- 
cipate slaves within the Republic. No person was per- 



The Struggle for Independence 57 

mitted to manumit his own slaves except by consent of 
Congress, unless he sent them out of the country. Free 
negroes were not allowed to dwell in Texas except by 
permission of Congress ; but the African slave trade was 
forbidden, and negroes could only be introduced from 
the United States. This Constitution was subscribed 
by fifty members of the convention, three of whom were 
Mexicans. 

The Constitution provided for a President, a Vice- 
President, an Attorney-General, and four secretaries, for 
the Departments of State, War, Navy and Treasury 
respectively. Because of the impossibility of holding 
elections, an ordinance provided that all the provisional 
officials were to be elected by the convention. There 
was also to be a Congress, consisting of two bodies. 
The President was to appoint, with the advice and con- 
sent of his Cabinet, all officers in public service. The 
government was authorized to borrow one million dol- 
lars upon the credit and faith of the Republic. David 
G. Burnet was chosen President, and Lorenzo de Zavala 
Vice-President of the government ad interim. The pro- 
visional capital was established at Harrisburg, on Buffalo 
Bayou. Sam Houston was appointed commander-in- 
chief of all the Texan troops, both regular and volun- 
teers. He was to be subject to the general orders of the 
provisional government, until the election of a president 
in accordance with the constitution. 

A few days after his appointment as commander-in- 
chief. General Houston started out at the head of his 
army to repel the Mexicans. Mrs. Dickinson, who had 
been in the Alamo, arrived with definite information con- 
cerning the fate of that fortress. A retreat was ordered. 
Houston withdrew from one place to another, leaving the 
settlements defenceless. The men under him were not 



58 Texas, the Marvellous 

disciplined soldiers, but pioneers who were unused to 
army life. They grew desperate and very disobedient. 
Division, a general want of harmony, and lack of disci- 
pline, jealousy and insubordination were flagrant. There 
was no regular term of enlistment, and no rigid rule of 
discipline. The army had gathered under a sudden im- 
pulse, and every one came and went as he pleased. These 
were common faults of an unorganized volunteer force. 
Many of the companies were recruited from the United 
States. Hence we find a battalion named "The New 
Orleans Guard," and a company called "The Cincinnati." 
There were "The Mustangs of Kentucky," the "Red 
Rovers" of Alabama, and the Mobile "Greys." 

During the revolutionary struggles of the "Lone Star 
State," Texas was a powerful magnet toward which were 
irresistibly attracted men of physical courage and rest- 
less appetite for adventure. These men, foregathered 
from all parts of the country, had much in common, for, 
by natural selection, they were all kindred spirits. What 
to other men was tragedy was to these men commonplace. 
War, adventure, scouting, Indian fighting were their 
pleasures — a little diversion from the ordinary. Strange 
and wild fellows many of these roving spirits were, often 
of unusual stature, shaggy as lions and not less brave. 
Such were the kind of men who, in the wars between 
Texas and Mexico, and later, between the United States 
and Mexico, formed the historic bands of scouts known 
as the "Texas Rangers." 

Houston's army continued to increase, even though 
desertions were numerous. At one time as many as fif- 
teen hundred men were enlisted under his standard. It 
is not strange that the volunteers deserted in the manner 
that they did. Although the men were eager to fight the 
Mexicans, and could hardly be restrained, Houston con- 



The Struggle for Independence 59 

tinued his retreat without explaining his plans to any 
one. It was not until they had reached the far bank of 
the Trinity River that Houston turned to face the Mexi- 
cans under Santa Anna. With this victory of San Ja- 
cinto the forces of the Mexicans were annihilated, and 
it was several years before any further struggles fol- 
lowed between the Texans and the Mexicans.' The Re- 
public of Texas was now an accomplished fact, for actual 
independence had been achieved. 

' For an account of this battle see Chapter VIII, "Houston and San 
Jacinto. " 



CHAPTER IV 

THE LONE STAR REPUBLIC 

As a result of the Revolution, which culminated at San 
Jacinto, a new Republic was projected into the family of 
nations, seeking recognition as an independent country. 
It is not strange that the great powers of the world did 
not tumble over themselves in their efforts to recognize 
the Republic of Texas. It was inevitable that such action 
would affect the relations of the country with Mexico 
herself. The United States was the first to grant recog- 
nition, in March, 1837. France followed a couple of 
years later. Holland and Belgium entered into treaty 
relations in 1840, but Great Britain did not do this until 
1842, through a series of treaties which began two years 
earlier. England was consistently favourable from the 
very beginning, however, for she desired a market for 
her merchandise "without having to climb over the 
United States tariff," as one of her ministers expressed it. 

It was many years before friendly relations were 
restored between the Mexicans and the Texans. The 
Texans could not efface from memory Goliad and the 
Alamo, and the Mexicans demanded revenge for the 
loss of so great a territory. Mexico undoubtedly dreamed 
of reconquering Texas. The borders between the two 
had never been defined. There was a great strip of neu- 
tral ground between the two republics over which neither 
exercised absolute jurisdiction. The Congress of Texas 
defined the boundary of the Republic to extend from the 
60 



The Lone Star Republic 61 

mouth of the Rio Grande to its source, and this included 
ill of the neutral ground, but she never exercised au- 
thority over it. 

Texas possessed a navy, which made itself felt on the 
Gulf of Mexico. The Invincible and the Brutus would 
scarcely be a desirable target for a submarine to-day, but 
they boldly cruised around the blue waters of the Gulf 
and wreaked considerable havoc. The Independence was 
finally added to the galaxy. The Independence was cap- 
tured by the Mexican navy after a spirited fight in which 
the Texans behaved most gallantly. The Invincible was 
unable to enter the harbour of Galveston when pursued 
by the enemy. She struck on the breakers and soon went 
to pieces. The Brutus was foundered in an equinoctial 
gale. Thus ended the old navy of the republic. The 
Zavalla with eight guns, the Austin with twenty guns, 
the San Jacinto with five guns, and some other small ves- 
sels were afterwards added to the navy. At one time 
several of them were loaned to the revolutionary govern- 
ment of Yucatan, that government agreeing to defray 
all expenses and render other compensation as well, so 
long as it operated against a common enemy. 

When Houston was inducted into office the second 
time, such was the situation of the navy. He recalled 
the vessels, and they proceeded to New Orleans for re- 
pairs. Months passed, and the ships were still at anchor 
either there or at Mobile. The Secretary of War ordered 
them back to Texas, but the commander refused to obey. 
He claimed that he had invested largely of his personal 
means in refitting the vessels, since the government had 
failed to send remittances. A commissioner was sent by 
President Houston. The commander evidently con- 
vinced him of the justice of his cause, for he and the 
commissioner sailed off on an expedition to Yucatan. 



^ Texas, the Marvellous 

This enraged Houston, and the commander was relieved 
by a proclamation which declared any future acts pirati- 
cal. This pronouncement brought the ships back to Gal- 
veston, but the sympathies of the people were with Com- 
maJider Maher. Four of these boats were still in com- 
mission at the time of annexation, and were by the treaty 
to be added to the navy of the United States. It is said, 
however, that they never did reach that destination. 

Spurred on by the renewed rumours of annexation, 
both in the United States and Texas, Mexico began to 
despatch small military parties into the country, evidently 
with the hope of maintaining her shadowy claim. Un- 
heralded and unexpected, General Vasquez, at the head 
of a force of five hundred men, marched against San 
Antonio in March, 1842, and captured the city, which 
he held for as much as two days. He then retreated 
to the west side of the Rio Grande. Another body of 
Mexicans took possession of Refugio and Goliad for a 
day or two. 

To say that these expeditions aroused great excitement 
in Texas is superfluous. The tension was intense; hun- 
dreds of volunteers were soon enrolled and ready to 
attack the enemy. But the Mexicans escaped across the 
Rio Grande. Santa Anna boldly proclaimed that Mexico 
would not cease her hostility until she had planted her 
eagle standard on the banks of the Sabine. A few 
months later another attack of Mexicans, vmder General 
Woll, was made just as miexpectedly, and San Antonio 
was once more in the Mexican toils. The District Court 
was in session, and the presiding judge was captured. On 
this occasion the occupation continued for more than a 
week. The whole of Texas was immediately aflame with 
anger, and the demon of war was once more aroused. 

A call was issued by President Houston for voliuiteers 



Sam HoiLston. 



The Lone Star Republic 63 

to gather at San Antonio for the purpose of making an 
invasion of Mexico. The two raids had enkindled anew 
the martial spirit in Texas. Moreover, a number of 
Texans were held as prisoners in the southern republic, 
including the members of the Santa Fe Expedition. 
Hence it was not difficult to secure volunteers. General 
Somerville was placed in command against the wishes 
of the troops. The men expected to cross the Rio Grande 
at Laredo, but Somerville remained on the Texas side. 
They finally crossed, but only a couple of days later 
re-crossed the river. Then an order disbanding the army 
fell upon the soldiers like a thunderbolt. 

These men of the outraged Republic, who had enlisted 
to avenge both personal and national insults, were 
astounded. About three hundred refused to disband and 
crossed the Rio Grande into Mexico once more. A com- 
mander of their own choice was elected. The town of 
Mier was made the first objective point. The skirmish- 
ing began in the town. The Mexicans were soon retreat- 
ing and firing from housetops as they retired. During a 
temporary lull the Mexican commander, who had re- 
ceived reinforcements, sent a flag of truce asking for 
surrender. Up to that time the Texans appeared to be 
in the lead. Colonel Fisher had been wounded, how- 
ever, and, fearing defeat, surrendered with more than 
two hundred men. While being conducted south toward 
the Mexican capital most of them tried to escape, but 
they were recaptured. The men were then compelled 
to draw a bean from a box in which every tenth bean 
was black — and this meant death. They requested to 
be shot from the front, and even this poor boon was 
denied them. They were blindfolded, secured, and made 
to sit down with their backs toward their executioners. 
Slightly more than one hundred finally reached home a 



64 Texas, the Marvellous 

year and a half after their capture. In its experiences 
as a Republic, Texas cannot be said to have covered itself 
with glory. It vi^as practically bankrupt the greater part 
of the time, and was constantly in trouble with its credi- 
tors because of the depreciation of the script currency 
that was issued. It was not, in fact, until the closing 
years of the Republic, that the financial condition ex- 
perienced any relief. Texas did produce some splendid 
types of manhood. The emergency of a new nation de- 
veloped men of the type needed, just as it did in the Thir- 
teen Colonies. There were legislators, judges, generals, 
and cabinet members who deserve high places on the roll 
of fame of these United States. A number of them did 
fill high places in the State and nation after annexa- 
tion. 

In one of his messages to Congress (1841), Houston 
says : "There is not a dollar in the treasury. The na- 
tion is involved from ten to fifteen millions; we are not 
only without money, but without credit, and for want of 
punctuality, without character. Patriotism, industry and 
enterprise are now our only resources — apart from our 
public domain, and the precarious revenue of the coun- 
try." 

The administration of Provisional President Burnet ^ 
was inaugurated in the gloomiest period of the war. The 
Alamo had fallen, and Santa Anna's main division was 
advancing toward the very heart of the republic. The 
seat of government was moved here and there as exi- 

1 Burnet was bom in New Jersey, but had lived in Ohio, and was a 
lawyer. LikeJHouston, he had dwelt among the Indians (Comanches) for 
several years. He became a citizen of Texas in 1826. He served as Vice- 
president under Lamar, and was really acting president for several months 
during the latter's absence on account of illness. He was Secretary of State 
under the first governor after admission as a State. In 1866 he was elected 
to the United States Senate, but was not permitted to take his seat. He 
died at Galveston in 1879 at the age of eighty-three years. 



The Lone Star Republic 65 

I 

gencies arose. Considering Washington on the Brazos 
too exposed, President Burnet had estabUshed himself 
at Harrisburg. The approach of Santa Anna drove him 
to Galveston Island. After the Battle of San Jacinto, 
and because there were no accommodations on the island, 
a change was made to Velasco. A few weeks later found 
the government at Columbia. The army was troublesome 
and insubordinate. It refused to acknowledge the man 
sent to command, while Houston was at New Orleans 
receiving treatment for his wound. 

In the midst of such confusion definite policies were 
not to be expected. The President simply faced prob- 
lems as they arose, and dealt with them as he could. 
Prior to the Battle of San Jacinto, such time as the wan- 
derings of the Government permitted was employed in 
efiforts to pacify the fugitives, strengthen the army, and 
obtain supplies. These efiforts were not conspicuously 
successful. The message of President Burnet to the 
first Congress speaks of these things in the following 
words : 

"Sometimes, when Texas was a moving mass of fugi- 
tives, they have been without 'a local habitation' and 
scattered to the cardinal points ; again they have been on 
Galveston Island, without a shelter, and almost without 
subsistence, and never have they been in circumstances 
of comfort and conyenience suitable to the orderly con- 
ducting of the grave and momentous business committed 
to their charge. That errors should have been commit- 
ted under such circumstances will not surprise those who 
have an honest consciousness of their own fallibilities. 
But that those extraordinary powers have not been per- 
verted to any sinister purpose, to the damage of the 
country, to personal aggrandizement, or to the creation 
or advancement of a party, or to the success of a 



66 Texas, the Marvellous 

speculation, I assert with a modest but firm and assured 
confidence." 

The first regular election was held in September, 1836, 
at which Stephen F. Austin, Henry Smith and Sam 
Houston were candidates for the presidency. The natu- 
ral habit of worshipping the successful warrior carried 
the hero of San Jacinto into office with a tremendous 
wave of enthusiasm. He received, four times as many 
votes as his two opponents. The Constitution was also 
ratified. Houston immediately appointed Austin Secre- 
tary of State and Smith Secretary of the Treasury, in 
an effort to harmonize all factions. His term of ofifice 
did not begin until December, but President Burnet re- 
signed in October and Houston was immediately in- 
augurated. 

A national seal and standard for the Republic were 
adopted December loth. The former consisted of a sin- 
gle star with the letters "Republic of Texas" circular 
on the seal, which was also circular. The national flag 
was to have an azure ground, with a large golden star 
central, and to be denominated the national standard of 
Texas. With regard to the territorial extent of the in- 
fant Republic, Congress was not backward in defining 
the boundaries. By an act of December 19th it was 
declared that the civil and political jurisdiction of Texas 
extended from the mouth of the Sabine to the mouth of 
the Rio Grande, thence up the principal stream of the 
latter river to its source. The initial session of the first 
regularly elected Congress was guided by a spirit of 
patriotism and singleness of purpose worthy of emula- 
tion. 

During this brief term of President Houston, the debt 
of the new Republic was augmented to two million dol- 
lars. A loan of five million dollars had been authorized 




MIRABEAU B. LAMAR, FROM AN OLD ETCHING 



The Lone Star Republic 67 

by Congress, but it was impossible to float it. The Gov- 
emment was accordingly compelled to institute the issue 
of paper money. For a time the army was reduced to 
a destitute condition for the want of food and cloth- 
ing. The salaries of officials went unpaid. The Con- 
stitution provided that the first president should serve 
only two years, and should be ineligible for election to 
succeed himself, but the succeeding presidential terms 
were extended to three years. 

At the election in 1838, Mirabeau B. Lamar was almost 
unanimously elected. Houston and his friends were 
strenuously opposed to Lamar, believing him to be vi- 
sionary rather than practical, and imbued with extrava- 
gant ideas for the conducting of governmental affairs. 
They were unable, however, to pick a strong man as his 
opponent. After this the whole country became divided 
into the "Houston Party" and the "Anti-Houston Party," 
and all the elections hinged on the policies advocated by 
Houston or those opposed to him. Lamar was opposed 
to the annexation of Texas to the United States, and his 
inaugural address pictured eloquently and at length the 
advantages of independence. He could not "regard the 
annexation of Texas to the American union in any other 
light than as the grave of all her hopes of happiness and 
greatness." His administration is most celebrated for 
its vigorous advocacy of public education. During his 
term a modest provision was made for the endowment of 
schools and colleges. Three leagues of land in each 
county were set aside for the establishment of primary 
schools or academies. Fifty leagues of land were to be 
surveyed and devoted to the establishment or endowment 
of two colleges or universities thereafter to be created. 

The financial problem continued to grow more and 
more serious. As the paper issues increased, depreda- 



68 Texas, the Marvellous 

tion followed apace. At the close of Lamar's term the 
debt exceeded seven million dollars, and the value of 
the government script had depreciated to about fifteen 
cents on the dollar. These treasury notes were gen- 
erally called "red-backs" from the colour of the paper 
upon virhich they were printed. The finances and credit 
of the republic had utterly collapsed. His administration 
has generally been condemned for its extravagance and 
lack of judgment. Distinguished though Lamar was as 
a patriot of imquestioned integrity and exalted courage, 
as an administrator he was an utter failure. 

The Indians were very troublesome, and provocation 
was not wanting. Incoming settlers did not hesitate to 
push out in the Indian country and occupy the rich lands 
of the aborigines. Surveyors and speculators penetrated 
into districts which hitherto had been generally recog- 
nized as their hunting grounds. As a resiilt, there were 
isolated tragedies without number, and several organized 
revolts of the savages. Many of the chiefs were likewise 
incited to revolt by Mexican emissaries. An abortive 
scheme to organize the Republic of the Rio Grande was 
entered into by some adventurers consisting of both Tex- 
ans and Mexicans. This new republic was to include 
Southern Texas, which was practically a neutral ground. 
An army advanced into Mexico as far as Saltillo, but 
Texas absolutely ignored the movement. 

The most notorious instance of lack of judgment was 
the Santa Fe Expedition, which ended in disaster. It 
was imdertaken without the sanction of Congress and 
against its protest. The expedition numbered about 
three hundred men. Its object was to extend the actual 
jurisdiction of Texas over that portion of the republic 
now included within New Mexico, but which was still 
administered by Mexico. If the inhabitants were will- 



The Lone Star Republic 69 

ing, the authority and protection of Texas was to be 
offered. Should the people there be found hostile, the 
expedition was to return after disposing of the merchan- 
dise carried along for trade. 

It must be remembered that Texas had always claimed 
the Rio Grande as its boundaries, and Santa Fe is sit- 
uated a number of miles on the eastern, or Texas, side of 
that stream. It is true that Texas had never been able 
to establish her jurisdiction over that remote section, 
because of its isolation, but that was probably no reason 
why she should not at some time attempt such exercise, 
unless prudence and good judgment warned against it. 
The guides did not understand the route well, and the 
party became bewildered and finally lost. Provisions 
gave out, water was very scarce, the Indians troublesome, 
horses were stolen, and occasionally men, who straggled 
off from the main body, were killed. The survivors 
reached the vicinity of Santa Fe in a starving condition. 
Here they were betrayed into a shameful surrender, and 
all were sent as prisoners to Mexico.^ 

"But what, the reader will ask," says Mr. Kendall, a 
member of the party, in his Santa Fe Expedition, "in- 
duced so large a body of young men to start upon an expe- 
dition of this kind? What objects could they have in 
view ? The answer is easy enough. They were actuated 
by that love of adventure, which is inherent in thousands 
of our race; they were anxious to participate in the 
excitements ever incidental to a prairie tour. . . . We 
were to pass over a portion of country entirely unknown 
to the white man, and might reasonably expect to meet 

' After annexation Lamar served as Division Inspector under General 
Henderson during the Mexican War. At tlie taking of Monterey he dis- 
played conspicuous gallantry. On his return to Texas he was elected to 
the Legislature. For a short time he was United States Minister to Argen- 
tina. He died at his home in Texas, December igth, 1859. 



70 Texas, the Marvellous 

with a larger share of adventure than usually falls to the 
lot of the Western travellers." 

In 1 84 1 David G. Burnet and Sam Houston v^rere the 
only candidates for the presidency, and Houston was 
again elected. The financial situation was all but des- 
perate, and Congress was in the mood for economy. 
Necessity also demanded such a move, for the limit of 
credit had been reached. Houston had evidently profited 
by his previous experience; a number of offices were 
abolished, while the salaries of others were appreciably 
reduced. By this means the expenditures of the Govern- 
ment were reduced until they were actually less than 
the receipts. The problem, nevertheless, continued a trou- 
blesome one throughout the life of the Republic and, 
at the close of 1845, the public debt was estimated at 
nearly twelve million dollars. Houston's second admin- 
istration was a stormy one. The financial difficulties, 
the Mexican raids, the seat of government controversy, 
and other incidents all contributed to its tempestuous 
character. The official intercourse between the executive 
and legislative departments was not always characterized 
by the spirit of urbanity. 

The Indian policy of President Houston caused a great 
deal of discussion, as there were radical differences of 
opinion. He advocated treaties with the red men rather 
than continuous efforts to exterminate them. In pur- 
suance of this policy, a number of treaties were actually 
entered into with them. The names of the Indian chiefs, 
whose signatures appear on these treaties, as revealed in 
the Secret Journals of the Senate, are rather amusing. 
Among these are Colonel Bowl, Big Mush, Corn Tassel, 
The Egg, Roasting Ear, Red Bear, Chicken Trotter. 
Some of the chiefs and tribes lived up to their obligations,, 
but many of them repudiated their solemn word. Un- 



The Lone Star Republic 71 

doubtedly they had much provocation from unscrupulous 
settlers and traders. 

In spite of all the political turmoil, and the discord 
between the executive and legislative branches of the 
Government, upon his retirement in 1844, both houses 
joined in a resolution commending Houston for his pa- 
triotic statesmanship. He Viras succeeded by Anson Jones, 
who had been serving as Secretary of State. Jones was 
the choice of the Houstonites. The Republic was in the 
most favourable position that it had ever been. The 
finances were excellent, while the assurances of peace 
and tranquillity were becoming stronger each day. The 
Indians were remarkably tranquil, and there was less 
disturbance upon the frontier during this administra- 
tion than at almost any period in her history. Even with 
Mexico the prospects for peace and the recognition of 
independence were flattering. President Jones had been 
an ardent patriot, and had occupied numerous official 
positions with unusual ability. By this time annexation 
was the all-absorbing issue, and the domestic affairs of 
the Republic were of relatively small importance to the 
public at large. 

The people of Texas were beginning to be fairly pros- 
perous, but the country was unwittingly a shuttlecock of 
stronger powers. Immigration had been rapid since the 
Battle of San Jacinto, and by 1845 there were probably 
a hundred thousand white inhabitants, most of whom 
had emigrated from the United States. Next in number 
were the German immigrants, with here and there an 
occasional Englishman or Frenchman. A renaissance of 
the empresario system had been instrumental in hasten- 
ing the development of the unsettled portions of the State 
on the western and northwestern frontier. Crops were 
excellent, commerce was increasing, and indications were 



72 Texas, the Marvellous 

evident that the hardest days of the Republic were over. 
The Republic of Texas occupied a comparatively large 
place in the diplomacy of three of the principal powers 
of the world — the United States, England and France, 
without a mention of Mexico. This was due in general 
to the refusal of Mexico to recognize the independence 
of Texas. The fact that such a small number of Anglo- 
Americans were able to achieve independence, and then 
to maintain it for about ten years, in spite of a pow- 
erful enemy on the border and in the face of tremendous 
financial difficulties, is one of the marvels of the century. 
There were indeed brave men and true in Texas. In 
the words of Henry van Dyke : 

"O question not, but honour every name, 
Travis and Crockett, Bowie, Bonham, Ward, 
Fannin and King, all who drew the sword 
And dared to die for Texan liberty! 
Yea, write them all upon the roll of fame, 
But no less love and equal honour give 
To those who paid the longer sacrifice — 
Austin and Houston, Burnet, Rusk, Lamar 
And all the stalwart men who dared to live 
Long years of service to the lonely star. " 



CHAPTER V 



THE LONE STAR STATE 



"The Lone Star of Texas, which ten years ago arose 
amid clouds over fields of carnage, obscurely seen for 
awhile, has culminated and, following an inscrutable des- 
tiny, has passed on and become fixed forever in that 
glorious constellation which all freemen and lovers of 
freedom in the world must reverence and adore — the 
American Union. Blending its rays with its sister States, 
long may it continue to shine, and may generous Heaven 
smile upon the consummation of the wishes of the two 
Republics now joined in one. May the union be per- 
petual, and may it be the means of conferring benefits 
and blessings upon the people of all the States, is my 
ardent prayer. The final act in the great drama is now 
performed. The Republic of Texas is no more!" 

These were the concluding words of the valedictory 
of President Anson Jones when he turned the Govern- 
ment over to General J. Pinckney Henderson, the gover- 
nor-elect.^ During this address, which was delivered 
in front of the old capitol in Austin, intense emotion 
thrilled every bosom while tears trickled from the eyes 

' This first. Governor of Texas was a native of North Carolina. He came 
to the Republic in 1836 at the head of a company of volunteers. At the 
inauguration of Houston as President he became Attorney General and after- 
ward served as Secretary of State. He was Minister to both England and 
France, and a Special Minister to the United States. In 1857 he was 
elected to the United States Senate, but died before taking his seat. 
73 



74 Texas, the Marvellous 

of many weather-beaten Texans. They felt that Texas 
was being stricken from the galaxy of nations. 

As the retiring executive uttered the words, "The Re- 
public of Texas is no more," he lowered the lone star 
emblem of that passing State, and hoisted the starred 
and striped banner of the greater Republic of which 
Texas became a member. Thus was consummated one 
of the most remarkable events in the civil history of the 
world, in which a nation voluntarily surrendered its sov- 
ereignty. The hillside was covered with people, and 
many a strong man wept to see the lone star come down. 
They had sustained that 'flag for almost ten years on 
many a battlefield, and they dreaded a future conflict 
over African slavery in the United States, for the war 
clouds were even then gathering. 

In a vote taken by the Texans the same year in which 
independence was declared, the Texans had expressed 
themselves almost unanimously in favour of annexation 
with the United States. The political situation in that 
Republic was such, however, that the proposal did not 
meet with favour. In the first place this proposition was 
promulgated at a time when the contest between the slave 
States and the free States was ebullient. The imminent 
possibility of extending slave territory to such an ex- 
tent as the admission of Texas would mean did not re- 
ceive favourable consideration in the North. Another 
impediment was the probability that the admission of 
Texas at that time presaged a war with Mexico, which 
was not at all desired. The best that could be consid- 
ered was the recognition of the new Republic. 

It was not imtil 1843, in the reign of President Tyler, 
that fresh overtures from the Texans were received with 
encouraging favour. But England was not indifferent. 
She exerted every controlling influence that she could 




PRESIDENT TYLER 



The Lone Star State 75 

interpose to prevent its accomplishment. The Mexican 
Government announced that it would consider annexa- 
tion as in fact a declaration of war. Deterred by neither 
of these threatening complications, a treaty was actually 
presented to the Senate in April, 1844. President Tyler, 
the "president without a party," had been so unfortunate 
in his political affiliations, however, that he had alien- 
ated the support of the Whigs, and, with only a partial 
support from the Democrats, the treaty was defeated 
by more than two to one. In the election which fol- 
lowed shortly afterwards, the Democratic party declared 
for annexation in its platform, and its candidate, James 
K. Polk, was elected. Thus it was that the annexation 
of Texas became a question only of time and method. 
Tyler succeeded in robbing his successor of a little of 
the glory by forcing a resolution providing for annexa- 
tion through the combined houses of Congress a few 
days before his office terminated. This method was 
declared to be unconstitutional, but such an announce- 
ment had no effect upon the action of the legislative body. 
The attitude of Texas herself threatened to become 
a stumbling-block at this time. Many of the public men 
were opposed to annexation, desiring to link their names 
with the rise and destiny of an independent nation. For 
a while it appeared as though annexation had been too 
long delayed by the United States. President Anson 
Jones himself was considered by many as an opponent of 
annexation. In his inaugural address he studiously 
avoided all reference to this subject, which everybody 
was thinking about, while the ninth and last Congress 
of the Republic in its regular session, which ended Feb- 
ruary 3rd, 1845, omitted to take any action on the mat- 
ter. Jones was probably misjudged. And yet so intense 
did public feeling become on this question, that there was 



76 Texas, the Marvellous 

actually talk of deposing him and introducing a govern- 
ment ad interim} As soon as the joint resolution was 
passed by the United States Congress, President Jones 
summoned a special session of the Texas Congress, and 
also called a State convention to pass upon the subject of 
annexation. At this time a treaty of peace between Texas 
and Mexico was presented by the latter country, provid- 
ing that the independence of Texas would be officially 
recognized, in the event that Republic would pledge itself 
against annexation. The Congress, which met on June 
1 6th, did not hesitate long, for on the fifth day it unani- 
mously rejected the treaty with Mexico, and on the sev- 
enth day unanimously declared itself in favour of an- 
nexation. In October the State constitution, which had 
been prepared, was submitted to the vote of the people, 
as well as the question of annexation. Thus the uncer- 
tainty was relieved, and the preliminaries necessary to 
the union were arranged as speedily as it was possible so 
to do. 

It required great care to prepare these preliminaries 
for statehood while the country was still a republic. In 

' Anson Jones was a Massachusetts man and had come to Texas to prac- 
tice medicine. He soon afterwards deserted medicine and entered the field 
of active politics. He was one of the earliest advocates of Texas independ- 
ence. He had participated in the Battle of San Jacinto. President Jones 
never recovered from the unpopularity aroused by the feeling that he 
opposed annexation. After annexation he retired to his place in Washing- 
ton County, and for eleven years remained in private life. Others were 
honoured with high positions and he felt that he had been slighted. At last 
his name was brought out as a candidate for the United States Senate, but 
he was defeated. On the 7th of January, 1858, he was at the old Capitol 
Hotel in Houston. He then seemed in low spirits, and in a sad tone remarked 
to a friend: "Here, in this house, twenty years ago, I commenced my politi- 
cal career in Texas, as a member of the Senate, and here I would like to 
close it." Not long afterward, a pistol shot was heard in his room, and 
Dr. Jones was found in a dying condition. The country was shocked at 
this sad occurrence. 



, The Lone Star State 77 

December an election for State officials was held, and 
by proclamation the Legislature was convened for Feb- 
ruary i6th, 1846. It was on this date that the transfer 
of authority took place. The Constitution drawn up 
was worthy of a great State. It is short, and exhibits 
many successful attempts at self-restraint. 

War between the United States and Mexico closely 
followed annexation. The question as to whether the 
United States was right or wrong in its actions, which 
provoked the conilict with our neighbouring Republic, 
has been adjudged with varying opinions by historians 
and students of international affairs. It is undoubtedly 
true that the attitude of President Polk was more un- 
yielding than a powerful nation should have conducted 
itself toward one relatively so weak. Mexico had ut- 
tered threats, but every one knew, and none better than 
Washington, that Mexico was too weak to follow up 
her defiance. 

The one question that was of great importance to 
Texas, and, therefore, to the United States after an- 
nexation, was the establishment of a definite boundary 
between it and Mexico. It is generally conceded that 
Texas, while a Spanish province, and subsequently a 
political division of the Republic of Mexico, did not touch 
the Rio Grande River at any point. In Southern Texas, on 
the Gulf, the dividing line was the Nueces River, which 
empties into the Gulf of Mexico near Corpus Christi. 
At another point the dividing line was the Medina River, 
flowing a few miles southeast of San Antonio. Far- 
ther west its boundaries were still more remote from 
the Rio Grande. 

According to a treaty entered into with Santa Anna, 
the Mexican president, when a prisoner, and therefore 
under a sort of duress, it was provided that Texas ob- 



78 Texas, the Marvellous ^ 

ligated herself not to lay claim to anything west of the 
Rio Grande River, but this entire treaty was afterward 
repudiated by the Mexican Government. In 1836 the 
Congress of Texas had passed a resolution declaring 
the boundaries of that Republic on the south and west 
to be the Rio Grande. From a legal standpoint this sig- 
nified nothing more than if that legislative body had 
asseverated that the Pacific Ocean should be their fron- 
tier. At no period in her history did Texas succeed 
in establishing her jurisdiction as far as the Rio Grande. 
The Santa Fe Expedition was the only attempt made to 
push the frontier westward, and that was a fiasco. 

The conflict between Mexico and the United States 
could have only one result, but, as this subject is not 
especially pertinent to a study of Texas, it will not be 
considered any more extensively. Suffice it to say that in 
the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, in 1848, the interna- 
tional boundaries were finally adjudicated, and the Rio 
Grande was established as the Texas frontier. There 
is no doubt that the war was really welcomed by the 
Texans, as it provided the opportunity for her adven- 
turous sons to make the execrated Mexicans feel the 
blighting efifects of a sanguinary struggle carried to 
their altars and firesides. It was a costly experience for 
Mexico, and the nominal sum paid by the United States 
for the lost territory did not moderate the bitterness of 
the compulsion. 

The limits of Texas were not yet finally determined. 
On two occasions, since the admission of Texas as a 
State, have the boundary lines of that expansive com- 
monwealth been changed. The first of these developed a 
controversy that aroused a bellicose attitude on the part 
of Texas which threatened serious trouble. As Texas 
was admitted it extended as far north as latitude forty- 



The Lone Star State 79 

' " " " ■' ■ 

two, and followed the Rio Grande River in its course 
through New Mexico. Appended to the final treaty with 
Mexico was a map on which the western frontier of 
Texas was outlined as claimed by that State. A number 
of questions at once arose. During the war with Mex- 
ico Federal troops had taken possession of Santa Fe. 
Almost immediately after peace was declared the people 
of New Mexico in a convention adopted an anti-slavery 
petition to Congress, in which protest was made against 
the claims of Texas. Thus the question of the limits 
of that State became inseparably bound up with the strug- 
gle over the expansion of slavery. 

Texas organized the County of Santa Fe, but the offi- 
cer appointed to assume charge was opposed by the 
United States officials, who claimed exclusive authority. 
The contest assumed the proportions of a national prob- 
lem. Texas had been admitted as a slave State, and 
its boundaries reached far above the line established by 
the Missouri Compromise. Although there was a clause 
stating that that portion above thirty-six degrees thirty 
minutes should become free when erected into a separate 
State, there appeared little likelihood that such action 
would be taken. This placed the anti-slavery forces 
against Texas. Newspapers of Texas published inflam- 
matory editorials, and the governor besought of the Leg- 
islature authority to enlist several thousand rangers. 

When Fillmore succeeded to the office of chief execu- 
tive, upon the death of General Taylor, a spirit of con- 
cession developed and the Compromise of 1850 was 
enacted. Texas needed money to pay off the obligations 
left over from the Republic. In consideration of ten 
million dollars delivered to the State in United States 
bonds, bearing five per cent interest and due in fourteen 
years, Texas relinquished all of her assertions to terri- 



80 Texas, the Marvellous 

tory beyond the present outlines. This excised territory 
comprised parts of Oklahoma, Kansas, Colorado, Wyo- 
ming, and New Mexico. The exact boundaries were not 
surveyed until half a century subsequently, but no seri- 
ous complications resulted. As a further consideration 
for the money paid, Texas ceded to the United States 
her forts, her navy, and her customs-houses with the 
revenue therefrom. After the many old obligations of 
the Republic of Texas had been satisfied, this still left 
a sufficient sum to rehabilitate the finances of the new 
State into a healthy condition. Texas had also been pru- 
dent enough to retain possession of all of her public 
lands. This placed the commonwealth in possession of 
immense resources, which have aided very materially in 
the development of that State. 

By a decision of the United States Supreme Court as 
recently as 1896, Texas lost what was known as Greer 
County, which was added to Oklahoma. This was the 
adjudication of an antiquated claim dating back to 1819, 
in the treaty between the United States and Spain. By 
this treaty the boundary line of the two countries was to 
extend from the "Gulph of Mexico" up the Sabine River 
to the thirty-second degree of latitude, then north to the 
Rio Roxo, or Red River, and then to follow the Red 
River westward. The Red River has two branches, how- 
ever, and the question in dispute hinged upon whether 
the demarcation was the north fork or the south fork. 
Texas naturally interpreted it to be the north fork, which 
gave her the greater territory, and actually exercised 
jurisdiction over that disputed territory, but the highest 
tribunal of the United States decided in favour of the 
south fork. She thus lost a territory greater than our 
two smallest States. 

Statehood for Texas was very fortunate. She sac- 



^ The Lone Star State 81 

rificed a certain degree of independence, but she was re- 
leased from a tremendous financial burden owing to the 
necessity of a diplomatic and military establishment. 
The population of the Republic of Texas was so meagre, 
and the territory so large, that the strain would have be- 
come infinitely greater as the years passed. The war with 
Mexico recorded the beginning of a period of rapid 
growth in the population and wealth of the State, which 
was arrested only by the paralyzing efifects of the inter- 
necine struggle between the States. The disposal of New 
Mexico unburdened the State from its staggering debts, 
and placed a good working balance in the treasury. Thus 
Texas could offer not only low taxes, a protected home- 
stead, fertile lands, and a genial climate, but an oppor- 
tunity for adventure. 

Immediately after annexation immigration began to 
pour into the new State in increasing numbers. In the 
decade preceding the Civil War, Texas was exceeded in 
growth by only four States. Whereas at the time of the 
Declaration of Independence the white population did not 
exceed thirty thousand, a year or two after annexation 
it had been augmented to more than a hundred thou- 
sand. In i860 there were almost half a million Tex- 
ans, and the value of property had increased in even 
a greater proportion. The rapid growth in population 
signified the occupation of large areas of the former wild 
lands. The rapidity with which the frontier receded is 
strikingly indicated by the lists of new counties created 
and organized during those years. In 1856 sixteen coun- 
ties were established, and the highest mark was reached 
in 1858, when thirty-five new counties were presented 
to the commonwealth. 

The growth and expansion in population was out- 
stripped by the accretion in wealth. The taxable values 



82 Texas, the Marvellous 

in i860 were eight hundred per cent greater than those at 
the initiation of statehood. With this development came 
a demand for improved transportation facilities. Work 
was begun on a number of projects for the improve- 
ment of bays and rivers. As it was possible for the wa- 
terways to serve only a small portion of the country, 
the construction of railways was advocated and encour- 
aged. Then followed the era of railroad construction. 

The first railroad in Texas was the "Buffalo Bayou, 
Brazos and Colorado Railroad," which was started west 
from the town of Harrisburg in 1852. Twenty miles 
were completed by August ist, 1853. This was the be- 
ginning of the Sunset System of railroads. The name 
afterwards became the "Galveston, Harrisburg and San 
Antonio," which name still remains for a portion of the 
system. The next iron road was the Galveston and Red 
River, begun at Houston in the following year, and de- 
signed to traverse the State to the north. The name was 
afterwards changed to the "Houston and Texas Central," 
which it still bears. This company operated its first lo- 
comotive on the road in 1856, at which time it had com- 
pleted two miles of track out of Houston. The Wash- 
ington County Railroad had reached from Hempstead 
to Brenhan, a distance of twenty-one miles, by i860. 
The Galveston, Houston and Henderson in 1859 con- 
structed a bridge across the bay and reached Galveston, 
providing that island its first connection with the main- 
land. It is needless to enumerate all the early railroads, 
but this brief description will give a little idea of the be- " 
ginning of railroad construction. 

The greatest problem that confronted Texas during 
these years was that of the Indians, whose tepees were 
within her boundaries. Some of these tribes were 
friendly, but the Comanches who roamed the western 



The Lone Star State 



prairies were exceedingly troublesome; Their special 
enemies had been Mexicans during the Republic, but if 
the brown Mexican enemies were scarce they were sat- 
isfied with whites. Furthermore, there were many hos- 
tile raids of the red men from the Indian Territory over 
into Northern Texas. A report submitted to the Legis- 
lature in 1850 outlined a list of one hundred and seventy- 
one persons killed, seven wounded, and twenty-five car- 
ried into captivity during the preceding year. 

The reason for this unusual casualty list was that the 
Federal troops had been withdrawn almost entirely. Sev- 
eral companies of volimteers were called into service 
by the State, and they did effective work. But there was 
a vast expanse of territory to be protected, much of it 
being trackless and almost waterless areas over which 
the foot of white men had seldom if ever trod. There 
were fastnesses and places of retreat known only to the 
savage. The State constabulary, known as the Texas 
Rangers, performed effective service, but they could not 
be everywhere along the border. The Indians were 
finally colonized on lands appropriated by the State, but 
even this did not entirely solve the problem. Stray bands 
would occasionally break away and plunder horses and 
other valuables from the settlers, sometimes even killing 
those who resisted. Such disturbances as these, how- 
ever, were not peculiar to Texas, for border troubles oc- 
curred from our northern border to our southern bor- 
der in the onward march of civilization toward the West. 
At a later date, with the exception of a few in Polk 
County, and near El Paso, all the aborigines were re- 
moved beyond the borders of the State. 

The feeling between the Mexicans and the Texans 
was not always of the best. The Mexicans were accused 
of stealing horses and stimulating opposition of the slaves 



84 Texas, the Marvellous 

to their masters. An escaped slave was never restored 
to its owner by Mexico. In this way a racial opposition 
was engendered which caused a nximber of unfortunate 
occurrences between Mexicans and Texans. In some 
counties resolutions were adopted in mass conventions 
which forever forbade any Mexican from coming within 
the limits of the county, and those living there were 
expelled. At Brownsville a Mexican band, under the 
leadership of a daring border chieftain, took possession 
of that city and killed several Americans who had in- 
curred the leader's hostility. He was defeated and driven 
back into Mexico with considerable losses on both sides. 

The so-called "Cart War" also caused considerable 
disquietude. Mexican cartmen had been engaged for 
many years in hauling goods between San Antonio and 
the Gulf. On several occasions they were attacked by 
lawless bands of persons who fired on them. At Goliad 
a meeting was called, which declared that "the presence of 
the greasers or peon Mexicans as citizens among us is 
an intolerable nuisance and a grievance which calls loudly 
for redress." One of the chief causes for the bitterness 
of feeling was the fact that the Mexicans carried goods 
cheaper than their American competitors. The militia 
were called out, and the "war" collapsed. 

No State in the Union has made more history than 
Texas. The Texans have contributed their full share of 
thrilling experiences. By the year i860 there were one 
hundred thousand and more negro slaves owned within 
the borders of Texas. The greater percentage of immi- 
grants had migrated from States where slavery was a 
recognized institution. Texas had likewise dropped into 
the Democratic column. No more than natural was it, 
therefore, that Texas should withdraw from the Union 
along with the other Southern States in the concerted 



The Lone Star State 85 

movement which followed the defection of South Caro- 
lina. The judgment, passions, and prejudices of an over- 
whelming majority of the people of Texas favoured se- 
cession. It must not be forgotten that a considerable 
portion of her population had lived there when Texas 
was a nation. The question of slavery in Texas, they 
considered, had been settled when Texas entered the 
Union as a slave State only fifteen years before. Had 
that privilege been denied, Texas never would have con- 
sidered annexation. The so-called "higher law" of the 
"Black Republicans" could not be considered. 

Alone, and almost unsupported, there was one public 
man who stood like a stone wall against secession. This 
man was the hero of San Jacinto, who was then gover- 
nor. In his inaugural address, Houston had said: 
"Texas will maintain the Constitution and stand by the 
Union. It is all that can save us as a nation. Destroy 
it and anarchy awaits us." He had been elected as an 
independent over the regular Democratic candidate. He 
was still a man of powerful influence on the platform, 
and, as ever, was aggressive in everything which he un- 
dertook. Heedless of a tremendous clamour, Houston 
refused to summon the Legislature in session. The peo- 
ple had recourse to an extraordinary action. A conven- 
tion was called by some unauthorized State officials, to 
which twice as many delegates were to be elected as there 
were members of the Legislature. This was ordered to 
meet on January 28th. Houston then yielded and con- 
vened the Legislature one week earlier. Five States had 
already seceded when the Legislature assembled. 

When the South Carolina Resolutions were transmitted 
to the Legislature, Governor Houston recommended "the 
adoption of resolutions dissenting from the assertion of 
the abstract right of secession." The temper of the as- 



86 Texas, the Marvellous 



sembly is shown a few days later by the adoption of 
an ordinance of secession by a vote of one hundred and 
sixty-seven to seven. The convention, which had been 
called, met, and before the vote of the people had been 
taken, elected delegates to the Congress of the Southern 
States already called, and appointed a Committee of Pub- 
lic Safety. This Committee immediately inaugurated 
steps to secure the arms and military property of the 
United States in Texas. This was very large, because 
the uncertain condition along the border had made neces- 
sary a number of army posts in which were an abund- 
ance of military stores. This was all surrendered by 
General David E. Twiggs, the commander of this depart- 
ment. When Twiggs, who was himself a Southerner, 
demurred a little, probably for propriety's sake, a display 
of force was made by a volunteer body, and Twiggs then 
wrote out an order for the surrender of all government 
military property in Texas to the Texans. 

It is worthy of note that the early military move- 
ments in Texas preceding and following secession were 
conducted under the Lone Star Flag. Whenever the 
Stars and Stripes were lowered, this banner was hoisted 
in their place. The employment of this former emblem 
was evidence of quite a general desire to resume State 
sovereignty, and simply work in harmony with the newly- 
formed confederacy. The members of this party, how- 
ever, were greatly out-numbered as events developed. 

That Houston at one time considered open resistance 
to the secessionists appears quite evident, but he evi- 
dently abandoned the idea and calmly submitted to the 
trend of affairs. Perhaps it was because of his age and 
infirmity. In some sections the union party was pow- 
erful, and a resourceful leader like Houston could have 
involved the State in a sanguinary civil war of its own. 



• The Lone Star State 87 

On February 23rd, the ordinance of secession was bal- 
loted upon by the electorate, and was carried by a vote 
of almost three to one. Texas delegates joined with 
those of the other recalcitrant States in establishing a 
provisional government of the Confederate States, at 
Montgomery, Alabama. It was not long until the inter- 
necine war was fully under way. 

Fortunate indeed was it for Texas that she was located 
so far from the scene of active military operations. She 
lay entirely outside the path of the terrible storm that 
devastated her sister States. Proximity to Mexico pro- 
vided a comparatively safe outlet for cotton and inlet 
for supplies of various kinds. Almost ninety thousand 
Texans affiliated with the Confederate Armies during the 
war. Hood's Texas Brigade and the Terry Rangers 
achieved for themselves laurels on many a bloody battle- 
field. Her officers won high places. Few conflicts, and 
those of a minor nature, occurred on Texas soil. For a 
while Galveston was in possession of Union troops, and 
there were some other isolated skirmishes at various 
places. The recapture of Galveston and the defence of 
Sabine Pass are the most brilliant fights. These strug- 
gles, however, were unimportant when compared with 
the bloody fights that took place in the Eastern States 
of the Confederacy. 

There was absolutely no fighting in the interior of 
Texas during the entire Civil War, and all the skir- 
mishes happened somewhere on the border. The culti- 
vation of the soil continued very much as it did pre- 
ceding the war, with the exception that the ranch own- 
ers and farmers were handicapped by the paucity of men 
to perform the work. These men had taken their places 
on the fighting line at other points. But the financial 
burden of Texas was unusually onerous, for she was 



88 Texas, the Marvellous 

compelled to protect her own borders from Indian dep- 
redations as well as satisfy the almost unprecedented 
demands of the Confederacy. 

It was indeed a scene of great disorder and confusion 
that Texas presented at the close of the war. Soldiers, 
who had proved their bravery on the battlefield, and 
who had endured frightful hardships without complaint, 
now became lawless brigands. Finding their cause lost, 
and having received no pay for months, they demanded 
a division of all Confederate property. It was seized 
and taken possession of wherever foimd. The utmost 
confusion reigned. The country swarmed with men out 
of funds and devoid of employment. The civil authori- 
ties confessed themselves impotent to deal with the situa- 
tion. Guerillas and highwaymen almost openly plied 
their vocations everywhere. An abortive attempt was 
made to rob the penitentiary at Huntsville. The State 
treasury was actually looted, but there was little of value 
in it. The war had exhausted all the available resources. 
An interregnum of several weeks intervened between the 
departure of the principal State and Confederate officers 
and the arrival of Federal officers, and this afforded the 
opportunity. 

From June 8th to October 13th, 1865, there are only 
blank pages in the fiscal ledger, "mute evidences of the 
end of a disastrous struggle, and of the temporary dis- 
solution of state government." A. J. Hamilton, a Texas 
Union man, was appointed provisional governor. Recon- 
struction presented many problems in Texas, as it did 
in the other Southern States. Union men who had been 
driven out of the State by secession were inclined to be 
unyielding and uncompromising when the tide of events 
placed things in their control. 

"Rid of the incubus of slavery," says Mr. Garrison in 



The Lone Star State 89 

his Texas, a Contest of Civilisations (1903), "and 
with her government again in the hands of her people, 
Texas received a new progressive impetus that has 
seemed to grow and strengthen with each succeeding 
year. It would appear as if the industrial and moral en- 
ergies of the State were emancipated along with the 
slaves, and the record of its development during the 
last quarter of a century has been really wonderful. In 
population, in wealth, in education, and in general cul- 
ture, the increase has been equally striking. The grain 
of Anglo-American mustard seed planted in the far 
Southwest has grown to a stately tree, in which many 
of the best ideas and impulses of the whole outer world 
have come to nest." 



CHAPTER VI 

CHARMING AND HISTORIC SAN ANTONIO 

San An-ton-i-o and Al-a-mo — there is something 
pleasing and euphonious about these very names. The 
one is reminiscent of the Dons and monks of Spain who 
once dwelt here; the other is a memory of unexcelled 
bravery and stoicism. But each would lose half its charm 
if translated into the prosaic English of Saint Anthony 
and Cottonwood. I have visited San Antonio several 
times, and each time I have been charmed the more. 
There is something restful and quieting about the city 
that one does not find in our large Eastern cities. The 
strenuous activity of those congested centres is absent, 
and life moves along in a far easier way. People have 
time to pause for a moment on their way to business and 
exchange confidences with their neighbours. There is 
just the least bit of that manana spirit of old Mexico 
distinguishable. In short, it is a city that is different, 
with an atmosphere and a charm peculiarly its own. The 
sun does not always shine, as some San Antonians would 
have you believe, but when it does shine there is a blue- 
ness of the sky and a balminess of the air which is so 
seductive that you are likely to forget you had any inten- 
tion of journeying farther. 

San Antonio is a sort of meeting-place between the 

East and the West, the North and the South, the old 

and the new. It is a gateway to the West, where changes 

begin to evolve that are peculiarly Western. It is on 

90 



Charming and Historic San Antonio 91 

the main highway to Old Mexico, the land of burros and 
sombreros. It is also the juxtaposition of the Latin and 
the Anglo-Saxon civilization, for you can find here the 
old Spanish patios in the interior of the houses. You 
will also discover numerous plazas scattered over the city, 
just one block in extent, which are riotous with bloom 
and reminiscent of the plazas to be found in Spanish 
towns. Your ears will be assailed on all sides by the soft 
and lisping accents of the Castilian tongue. Built upon 
the foundations of an eighteenth century town, and still 
retaining many of the features of the earlier order, San 
Antonio is one of the most distinctive of American cities. 
It will always be regarded by loyal Texans as the shrine 
of early Texas history, while the old missions and other 
remains of the Spanish era are quaint and picturesque 
landmarks which attract visitors from every State and 
every country. 

San Antonio is an old city, as Texas cities go. The 
cowled and f rocked Franciscan monks tramped three hun- 
dred leagues across the deserts of Northern Mexico in 
their numerous journeys which led them to this site. 
Many fell by the wayside in this fearful enterprise. It 
was the report of the discovery of the Gulf of Mexico 
by La Salle, the famous French explorer, that prompted 
Spain to make conquests in this territory. With the 
priests went soldiers clad in helmet and mail, who sought 
gold and adventure. The sword and the cross marched 
hand in hand, as is usual with the Spaniards, and in this 
way the site of San Antonio was first visited by white 
men. 

A number of springs bubble up here out of the earth 
and form a beautiful little stream of wonderfully clear 
water; and it is to this fact that San Antonio owes its 
location. These streams, which furnish an abundant sup- 



92 Texas, the Marvellous 

ply of water, and the verdant vegetation caused by a 
constant supply of moisture, attracted the attention of 
these Franciscan monks, so that they decided to erect a 
mission here for the Indians who were numerous in this 
neighbourhood. The first mission was established at the 
head springs of the San Pedro by Don Martin de Alar- 
con, in 1 71 8. He called it the Mission de San Antonio 
de Valero. The mission was not a new one, but was re- 
moved from its former location on the Rio Grande. At 
the same time he created the presidio of San Antonio de 
Bexar, or fort of San Antonio, declaring it to be his mon- 
arch's capital in this country. This was probably located 
near an Indian village known to be there. The domin- 
ion he named the Province of Bexar (pronounced bear). 

An old Spanish chronicle reads as follows : "In this 
province (Bexar) are some beautiful springs. So great 
is their volume that they send out within a short dis- 
tance a considerable river which they form. This stream 
is called San Antonio. Across the river on its eastern 
bank and about two gunshots is the Mission of San An- 
tonio de Valero (now the Alamo). This mission was 
founded on the First of May, 171 8, by order of the most 
excellent Marquis de Valero. It was the first college of 
the Holy Cross that in its zeal for the salvation of the 
natives was planted in the province of Texas. The rec- 
ords show that since its formation and up to this date 
(1762) seventeen hundred and ninety-two persons 
have been baptized here. At present there are seventy- 
six families here, which, counting widows, orphans, and 
other children, comprise two hundred and seventy-five 
persons." 

The natives did not welcome the intrusion of a paler 
race, and hostilities arose almost immediately. They 
had hitherto enjoyed undisputed possession of the spark- 



Charming and Historic San Antonio 93 

ling springs, and they cared not to share their boon with 
any other people. A couple of years later reinforcements, 
both clerical and military, arrived, and a new and stronger 
presidio arose on the site of the present Military Plaza, 
or Plaza de Armas. The river ran through one side of 
it which guaranteed an inexhaustible supply of pure 
water. One-storied buildings were erected on the four 
sides of the parallelogram, and this was surrounded by 
a stout stockade composed of a wooden wall. Piercing 
this at intervals were loopholes for fire-arms. 

Of the three permanent Spanish settlements in the 
early days of Texas, that of San Antonio was by far 
the most important. It was the western outpost of Span- 
ish authority in Texas, as was Nacogdoches, the eastern- 
most outpost. It was the capital of the province during 
practically the whole of the Spanish and the Mexican 
occupation. It became the scene of the most desperate 
fighting in the struggle for freedom from the Mexican 
yoke. A number of legends date its settlement back to 
the last decade of the seventeenth century, but this claim 
is not supported by trustworthy evidence. 

From its founding almost, San Antonio was a combi- 
nation, or aggregation, of mission, presidio (fortress) 
and villa (village). The three did not always dwell in 
peace and harmony, as the early records disclose many 
controversies. As the lawmakers and judges were so 
distant, the colonists were compelled to settle their petty 
quarrels among themselves. As a result, the minutes of 
the local assemblies are a record of petitions and trivial 
discussions. They are of no interest to-day other than 
the light they throw on the public questions of that day. 

A constant call went out for settlers after the estab- 
lishment of the eastern missions. This call was finally 
answered by the establishment, in 1 731, of a villa, or civil 



94 Texas> the IViarvelloug 

settlement, designated as San Fernando, in honour of 
the Spanish king. The colonists were secured in the 
Canary Islands. A royal decree provided that four hun- 
dred families should be transferred to Texas, but only a 
small proportion of this number came. These colonists 
were landed at Vera Cruz, and were compelled to make 
the long and wearisome march overland. The govern- 
ment paid all expenses of the settlers, and the most elab- 
orate plan was formulated for their well-being. The de- 
crees of the viceroy provided for their welfare as a father 
would look after his children. It was even decreed that 
they become hidalgos, that is, gentlemen of the realm. 
But they seem to have made little of this honour. The 
settlement was to become a ciudad, or city. These col- 
onists became the "Canary Island" settlers, whose mem- 
bers and descendants have occupied quite a prominent 
place in the history of San Antonio. 

Although the missions were convenient to the settle- 
ment of San Fernando, the settlers demanded a parish 
church of their own. In response to these demands the 
corner stone of San Fernando was laid in 1744. This 
church was used as the central place of worship in San 
Antonio for a century and a quarter. The present ca- 
thedral was then built around and over the old church. 
All that now remains of this historic structure is the curi- 
ous polygonal portion with its Moorish dome at the west- 
ern end. In the early days there was a constant triangu- 
lar quarrel between the three discordant elements men- 
tioned above. Some of it was of the most trifling nature, 
and the conduct was childish. In 1793 the mission known 
as the Alamo was abandoned, and one of the discordant 
elements disappeared. The real name of the settlement 
was long in doubt. San Fernando was applied only to 
the civil settlement. As the presidio and villa gradually 



Charming and Historic San Antonio 95 

united and merged into one community, there was a con- 
stant struggle between Bexar and San Antonio, but the 
latter gradually supplanted all other designations. 

All the writers of the early days tell of the obsequi- 
ousness of the Spaniards in Bexar towards the Indians, 
and the contempt with which the Indians treated the 
whites. Here is what one historian says of this period : 

"Encouraged by the passive submission of the Mex- 
icans of mixed blood, they (the Indians) carried their 
insolence so far as to ride into Bexar, and alight in the 
public square, leaving their horses to be caught and pas- 
tured by the obsequious soldiers of the garrison, on pain 
of chastisement. To raise a contribution, they would en- 
ter the town with a drove of Mexican horses, stolen by 
themselves, and under pretence of having rescued the 
caballado from hostile Indians, would exact a reward 
for their honesty ! They openly carried oS herds of cat- 
tle and horses from the settlements east of the Rio 
Grande, sparing the lives of the herdsmen, not from mo- 
tives of humanity, but because they deemed it impolitic 
to kill those who were so useful in raising horses and 
mules for the benefit of the Comanches." 

San Antonio did not grow very fast. When Zeb Pike 
passed through here in the early part of the Jast century, 
he writes of it as a city of "perhaps two thousand souls, 
most of whom reside in miserable mud wall houses, cov- 
ered with thatched grass roofs. The town is laid out on 
a very grand plan." 

In 1834, a colonist who visited San Antonio gives us 
the following description of the city: 

"Bexar is one of the poorest, most miserable places in 
this country. The Indians steal all their horses, rob their 
rancheros, and, nearly every week, murder some one or 
two of the inhabitants. From want of union and energy, 



96 Texas, the Marvellous 

they tamely submit to this outrage, which all admit is in- 
flicted by a few Tahuacanas." 

Even at a much later period San Antonio was quite 
crude, for F. L. Olmstead, writing in 1856, says: "The 
street life of San Antonio is more varied than might be 
supposed. Hardly a day passes without some noise. If 
there be no personal affairs to arouse talk, there is some 
government train to be seen, with its hundreds of mules 
on its way from the coast to a fort above, or a Mexican 
ox-train from the coast. A government express clatters 
off, or news arrives from some exposed outpost, or from 
ONTew Mexico. An Indian in his finery appears on a 
shaggy horse, in search of blankets, powder and ball. 
. . . The street affrays are numerous and characteris- 
tic. . . . More often than otherwise, the parties meet 
upon the plaza by chance, and each, on catching sight of 
his enemy, draws a revolver, and fires away. As the 
actors are under more or less excitement, their aim is 
not apt to be of the most careful and sure, and conse- 
quently it is, not seldom, the passers-by who suffer. . . . 
If neither is seriously injured they are brought to drink 
together on the following day, and the town waits for 
the next excitement." 

With the advent of Texas sovereignty, obsequiousness 
toward the Indian ceased. He was taught that the white 
man was lord of the place. The most sanguinary event 
that transpired with the red men in San Antonio was 
the famous Council House Fight in 1840. The Co- 
manches had expressed a desire for a conference con- 
cerning ransom for captives. The commanding officer 
had told them that they could come if they brought all 
their white captives, but not to come otherwise. On 
March 19th a party of sixty-five Comanches, including 
a dozen chiefs, arrived at San Antonio. They brought 



Charming and Historic San Antonio 97 

with them only one prisoner, Matilda Mary Lockhart, 
who, together with her sister, had been carried into cap- 
tivity a couple of years before. The chiefs were con- 
ducted to the Court House, which stood at the northeast 
corner of Market Street and the Main Plaza. At that 
time, however, Market Street was called Calle de Cala- 
bosa, because the jail fronted on it just across an alley 
from the Court House. In this palace of justice the 
chiefs took seats on the platform together with the oflfi- 
cers. Soldiers were stationed both within and without 
the building. 

" 'Where are the prisoners you promised to bring in to 
this talk?' was asked. 

"Muke-war-rah, the chief who held the last talk with 
us, and made the promise, replied : 'We have brought in 
the only one we had; the others are with other tribes.' 

"A pause ensued because, as this answer was a palpable 
lie, and a direct violation of their pledges, solemnly given 
scarcely a month since, we had the only alternative left 
us. He observed this pause, and asked quickly, 'How 
do you like the answer?' " 

The above is from the official report of the officer in 
charge to President Lamar. During the whole of the 
proceedings the chiefs kept a keen and scrutinous watch 
upon every movement of the whites. 

The girl was questioned, and said that she had seen 
several other prisoners only a few days previous, and 
that the Indians had determined to bring them in one at 
a time to extort large ransoms. She also told of the 
brutal treatment she had received. The chiefs listened 
in haughty and defiant silence. The soldiers were then 
stationed at the doors. Colonel Fisher then reproached 
the Indians for their perfidy. They were reminded of 
the terms of the conference. He said : "You have come 



98 Texas, the Marvellous 

against our orders. Your women and children may de- 
part in peace, and your braves may go and tell your peo- 
ple to send in the prisoners. When these prisoners are 
returned, you and the other chiefs here present may like- 
wise go free. Until then we hold you as hostages." 

The interpreter at first refused to translate this, saying 
that a conflict would undoubtedly follow. As soon as he 
uttered the words, he left the room. True to his predic- 
tion, the chiefs strung their bows, and drew their knives. 
A rush was made for the door. The order was given, 
"Fire, if they do not desist." The Indians fought des- 
perately, and a general order to fire was given. In a 
short time every one of the chiefs lay dead upon the floor. 
The Indians in the plaza outside took up the fight and 
contended like wild beasts. The Indian boys, who had 
been shooting at marks, killed some of the whites, and 
even the squaws fought like fiends. Only one warrior, a 
renegade Mexican, escaped. Thirty-five Indians were 
killed. The women and children were detained as pris- 
oners. A number of Texans, seven in all, were slain. 
One squaw was released, mounted on a good horse, and 
sent back to her people with the message that the pris- 
oners would be released when the white prisoners were 
brought in. A short time afterwards a party of 
Comanches, displaying a white flag, appeared on a hill a 
short distance from San Antonio. The band brought in 
several white children. Their own people were released 
and the Indians hurried away. 

The modern city of San Antonio now houses more 
than one hundred thousand people, and is the largest city 
in Texas. At the time of the massacre it was a typical 
Mexican town of about seven thousand. The city was 
then on the opposite side of the river from the Alamo. 
It has now grown up to and around that old structure. 



Charming and Historic San Antonio 99 

The San Antonio River meanders around through the 
town for many miles, and one comes across it in the most 
unexpected places. In places its blue waters ripple be- 
tween banks that are parked with blooming shrubs and 
plants. Many of the glimpses of bridges, of which there 
are about twenty, and the graceful bends are extremely 
beautiful. 

There are many little parks in San Antonio, comprising 
a single square, and called plazas after the Spanish fash- 
ion. On Milam Square is the grave of the brave Ben 
Milam, together with a monument to that hero. At 
Travis Park is a great monument to the "Lost Cause," 
which bears the significant inscription, "Lest We Forget." 
The first public park was a royal grant from the King 
of Spain, and the seal to the grant bears the date of 1729, 
almost two centuries ago. It is known as San Pedro 
Park, and is at the source of that little stream, which was 
also the site of the original settlement. The palm, the 
pomegranate, the crepe myrtle, the stately century plant, 
the huisache, the giant live oak, and the pecans give a 
splendid vernal setting to a city of unusual architectural 
beauty. 

Just outside San Antonio is a fascinating bit of wood- 
land laid out as Brackenridge Park, which was the gift 
of a number of citizens. It adjoins the springs which 
are the source of the San Antonio River. Vine-laden 
trees overhang the stream that winds through it. Live 
oaks festooned with Spanish moss form a shaded drive- 
way in many places. Through it like a silver ribbon 
flows the river. It is larger than the Central Park, of 
New York. It has been but little changed from its vir- 
gin forest state. In it also roam large numbers of buf- 
falo, elk and deer, while aquatic and other birds also 
abound. Wild songsters fill the air with their melody. 



100 Texas, the Marvelloug 

Seldom have I heard so many feathered warblers in any 
part of the world as right here in this park so near to 
nature. 

San Antonio is situated at an elevation of seven hun- 
dred feet, on a high and clear plateau which is rimmed 
by blue ridges in the distance. Then, if the visitor wants 
to live in the past for a while, to indulge in sentimental 
romapce, he can visit the ruins of the several historic 
old missions just a few miles outside of the city itself. 
There are some splendid roads that lead to all points of 
the compass. In one direction the "hill country" can 
be visited, while a longer drive will take the traveller to 
Medina Lake, an irrigation reservoir which is similar in 
shape to and about the same size as Lake George. It 
is a part of one of the largest private irrigation projects 
in our land. The lake is a place of great natural beauty, 
being surrounded by a circle of low mountains, and it 
has been stocked with fish until it is said to be one of the 
best fishing places in the State. 

The modem San Antonio has changed a great deal 
from the original city. If Davy Crockett was to come 
back, he would have difficulty in recognizing the new 
San Antonio. And yet it has not transmuted so much as 
to be unrecognizable. The mutation has been in growth, 
but the old has not been destroyed. We find still an old 
Mexican quarter, which is very much Mexican. There 
are many of the one-storied, flat, adobe buildings with 
water spouts jutting out over the street. Frequently the 
walls project a couple of feet above this line, thus form- 
ing a ready-made breastwork for the street fighting so 
common in Spanish-American countries. One will see 
Mexican women, young and old, going about wearing the 
black shawl so much worn south of the Rio Grande. 
Mexican peripatetic vendors stand on the corners selling 



Charming and Historic San Antonio 101 

the "dulces" (candies), and women oflfer for your in- 
spection the beautiful Mexican drawnwork which rep- 
resents so much labour. Swarthy-complexioned Mexican 
labourers will be observed at work on the streets, and in 
the fields round about. They are the same as you would 
witness in Old Mexico, except that they have discarded 
the big hats which overtop the Mexicans there. 

The new buildings, which have been constructed in 
San Antonio, such as the postoffice, the railroad stations, 
and even business blocks, have generally retained the 
Spanish style of architecture. The reason is that the San 
Antonians pride themselves upon their history, and do 
everything that is possible to make the new city preserve 
the traditions of the past. Arcades and permanent awn- 
ings cover the sidewalks, all of which is an evidence of 
a sunny climate. A few of the streets have been widened, 
but others are as narrow as when first laid out. 

Fort Sam Houston occupies the most prominent eleva- 
tion in San Antonio, and several thousand of Uncle 
Sam's soldiers are frequently stationed at this army post. 
The sound of the bugle is a very familiar one to San An- 
tonians. From the time of the Mexican War, San An- 
tonio has been one of the chief military establishments 
of the United States. Practically the only exceptions 
were during the Civil War, and a few years following, 
when the troops were removed to Austin. Early in the 
seventies, Government Hill was chosen for the construc- 
tion of permanent post headquarters. Since then a vast 
amount of money has been expended on this site, and it 
was given the name which means so much in Texas his- 
tory. Most of our great military leaders have seen serv- 
ice here, among them being Grant, Lee, Hood and Sheri- 
dan. It is now a division headquarters of the army. 
It should not be forgotten also that San Antonio was the 



102 Texas, the Marvellous 

rendezvous of the famous regiment of "Rough Riders" 
raised for service in the Spanish-American War. 

The day of the picturesque frontier forts has almost 
passed. Many of them have been abandoned, and those 
where the soldiers are still quartered have been rebuilt 
and modernized. The names of many of the old forts 
still appear in the nomenclature of towns, such as Fort 
Smith, Fort Worth, Fort Scott, and others, but their 
military character has disappeared. Civilization and de- 
velopment have made the patrolling of the plains less 
necessary, and new barracks have been erected at central 
points, such as those at Fort Houston, to harbour the 
troops that the Government considers it necessary to 
maintain. The different regiments are shifted from one 
barrack to another, a change usually being made every 
few months. 

The magnificent buildings which constitute Fort Sam 
Houston are situated on a hill which looks down upon 
the Alamo, and across the prairie to the other old Span- 
ish missions. Few people visit San Antonio without a 
trip to Fort Sam Houston, for the buildings themselves 
are attractive, and the view which it affords of the sur- 
rounding country well repays the little exertion required. 
The red and brown sandstone of which the buildings are 
constructed gives a beautiful tint to everything. The 
Water Tower is a most artistic erection, every line of its 
exterior being a line of beauty, and the outlook from the 
balcony near the top is superb. 

The life of the soldier is not all play. From the first 
notes of the morning bugle call until the last strain of 
Retreat is sounded, the hours are filled with drills, gym- 
nastics, sham battles, target practice and other occupa- 
tions. At sunrise the soldiers' day begins. As the light 
breaks across the rolling prairie on the eastern horizon, 




THE WATER TOWER, FORT SAM HOUSTON, SAN ANTONIO 



Ctiarming and Historic San Antonio 103 

the roar of the morning gun disturbs the silence of the 
city. Then follows the lively music of the Reveille, to 
which the soldiers have set the follow^ing words : 

"I can't git 'em up, I can't git 'em up, 
I can't git 'em up in the morning, 
I can't git 'em up to-day. " 

Then the sleepy soldiers have to turn in for the morn- 
ing march and answer to roll call. Three times each day 
comes the mess call with its rather hum-drum music. To 
this the soldiers have also set their own words. The 
day is otherwise filled with the sick-call, guard-mounting, 
inspection, review, etc., everything being announced by 
the trumpets. As sunset illumines the western sky the 
band plays the Star Spangled Banner, and the flag is 
slowly lowered from the flagstaff. The darkness deepens, 
the reds, pinks and purples become fainter, and soon Fort 
Sam Houston is outlined in dark shadows against the 
evening sky. Uncle Sam has endeavoured to look after 
his soldiers well. Fine grounds for football, baseball, and 
other games are provided for the leisure hours of the 
soldiers, and they are encouraged to engage in them; 
reading courses and a well-stocked library are main- 
tained, as well as concerts for officers and men. 
The mess department is in charge of competent help, 
and the Government aims to provide the best of food, 
even if the variety is not as great as a Broadway 
hotel. 

As Texas has far more history than many of cmr 
American States, so San Antonio has been the centre of 
all its history. San Antonio was the scene of minor 
engagements between the French and Spanish, and also 
between the Texas-Mexicans and the Spaniards in the 
revolutionary struggles which resulted in the independ- 



104 Texas, the Marvellous 

ence of Mexico. Several years after independence it was 
twice occupied by Mexican troops, but only for a little 
while each time. The capture of the city so aroused the 
surrounding country that in a very short time hun- 
dreds of gallant Texans were on their way to free San 
Antonio from the invaders, and the city was evacuated. 
The city was the point of rendezvous for a number 
of expeditions fitted out for the invasion of Mexican 
territory. 

The old Veramendi Palace, so noted in San Antonio 
history, has disappeared. It was a typical one-storied 
Mexican building with plastered front, but it should have 
been preserved. The rulers of the Province of Bexar 
long dwelt within its walls. James Bowie won his bride, 
the daughter of Governor Veramendi, there. For per- 
mitting his daughter to wed a Texas patriot, the Gover- 
nor and his family were later exiled by Santa Anna. 
It was in this building also where General Twiggs sur- 
rendered to the Confederate commissioners all supplies 
and authority under his control. The heavy double doors 
were scarred and battered by shot and shell, and it was 
almost at its portal that Ben Milam received his death 
wound in the very hour of victory. To-day every evi- 
dence of the existence of the building has been effaced, 
but the doors with their bullet scars are still preserved in 
the city. 

Of all the battles and struggles for supremacy that 
have occurred in Texas, one may truthfully say that the 
siege of the Alamo fills the largest place in history. It 
is the most superlatively dramatic episode in the history 
of the United States. The fall of the Alamo, and mas- 
sacre of its garrison, caused a profound sensation 
throughout the entire United States, as well as Texas. 
It is a part of American history, and it is the kind of his- 



Charming and Historic San Antonio 105 

tory that has been soul thrilling from the very begin- 
ning of time. The heroism of the defenders has been 
ranked with that shown at Thermopylae and at the 
charge of Balaklava. It is not remarkable for the num- 
bers engaged on the Alamo side, for they numbered less 
than two hundred, but it is notable because of the cour- 
age and patriotism of the defenders who fought until the 
very last man had fallen. Greater bravery or grander 
heroism could no man show. As has been said: 
"Thermopylae had its messenger of defeat, but the Alamo 
had none." Among these was Davy Crockett, who is 
still an undimmed hero among boys. But the patriot 
Travis, the commander ; James Bowie, the designer of the . 
bowie knife; Lieutenant Dickinson, and a hundred and 
more obscure heroes were equally brave, and yet they 
have not a monument erected to their individual 
memory. 

The old mission of the Alamo, which was probably 
the chapel of the original mission, stands at one side of 
the Alamo Plaza in San Antonio and faces the west. 
It is not imposing in appearance, as one might be led to 
believe, for the walls are not high. In size it is about 
seventy-five feet long by sixty-two feet wide. Originally 
designed as a place of worship, it was sectilarized in 1 793 
and used as a citadel of defence against the incursions 
of the Indians. At that time there were only a few score 
Indians attached to the mission. The baptismal records 
reveal the surprising number of one hundred distinct 
tribes represented in the various services during the re- 
ligious career of this mission. With walls four and a 
half feet thick and twenty-two feet high, it was well 
adapted for defence against the light arms of that day. 
The walls are severely plain, with the exception of the 
ornate carvings on the arched doorways and side pillars. 



106 Texas, the Marvellous 

The Alamo has recently been restored more nearly to its 
original condition at the time of this famous struggle. 
At one side of the mission was an enclosure, surrounded 
by a high wall, in which were some buildings that had 
been the living quarters of those connected with the mon- 
astery. 

The old document, quoted above, also says of the 
Alamo: "It contains a convent, or monastery, fifty yards 
square with arcades above and below. In the monastery 
are the living-rooms of the religious, the porter's lodge, 
the dining-room, kitchen and office. The mission has a 
well-built stone chapel eleven yards long. Among its or- 
naments is a stone cross two yards high and capped with 
silver. In the cross are hidden the reliquaries, four in 
number, and each containing its own relic. The altar is 
adorned with carved and painted images. 

"There are seven rows of houses for dwellings for the 
Indians. These are made of stone and supplied with 
doors and windows. They are furnished with high beds, 
chests, metates, pots, flat earthen pans, kettles, cauldrons 
and boilers. With their arched porticoes, the houses 
form a beautiful plaza through which runs a canal skirted 
with willows and by fruit trees and used by the Indians. 
To insure a supply of water in case of blockade by an 
enemy, a curbed well has been made. For the defence of 
the settlement the plaza is surrounded by a wall. Ovei; 
the gate is a large tower within whose embrasure are 
three cannons, some firearms, and other appropriate sup- 
plies for warfare." 

This was probably the condition of the Alamo at the 
time of the tragedy. That part of it outside of the mis- 
sion is just as sacred as the chapel itself, for here it was 
that the greater part of the struggle took place, and the 
final act only was enacted within the mission walls. The 



Charming and Historic San Antonio 107 

walled enclosure around the convent, which adjoined the 
church on the north, now appears in its original condi- 
tion, but the buildings have not been restored. The 
larger area, however, which was in front of the church, 
and on the west side of the convent enclosure, has en- 
tirely disappeared. A part of it is included in the Plaza. 
This area was about one hundred and fifty-four yards 
long and fifty-four yards wide, and enclosed by walls 
nine to twelve feet high and nearly three feet thick. Into 
this area several doors opened from the convent enclo- 
sure, and their locations can be seen in the restored wall. 
The area of all the enclosures probably amounted to two 
or three acres. The church itself was used as the powder 
magazine. 

After the conflict the Alamo was roofless, and re- 
mained so for many years. At the close of the Mexican 
War, the United States leased the entire group from the 
Catholic Church. It was occupied as a quartermaster's 
and commissary depot up to the beginning of the Civil 
War, after a complete restoration of the buildings. It 
was then surrendered to the Confederacy. After the col- 
lapse of the Confederacy, the buildings were again used 
by the United States until 1876, when the quartermaster's 
depot was removed to Fort Sam Houston on Government 
Hill. The chapel was purchased by the State some time 
ago, but it was only recently that the convent portion 
was added through an enabling act of the Legislature. 
A syndicate was endeavouring to secure it as a site for 
a hotel. 

"Save the Alamo" was the appeal sent broadcast over 
the State by the "Daughters of the Republic of Texas." 
When the voluntary contributions were insufficient, the 
State stepped in. But there has been much discord. One 
faction wanted to tear down all but the church. The 



108 Texas, the Marvellous 

other desired to restore the monastery. My sympathies 
are strongly with the latter faction. The entire fortress 
should be restored as nearly as possible to its original ap- 
pearance. 

As has been mentioned elsewhere in this work, the 
Texan soldiers were mostly volunteers. They were pio- 
neers in a new land, accustomed to take the initiative, 
and consequently very independent in their actions. On 
January 17th, 1836, Houston wrote to Governor Smith: 
"Col. Bowie will leave here in a few hours for Bexar, 
with a detachment of from 20 to 50 men. ... I have 
ordered the fortifications in the town of Bexar to be de- 
molished and, if you should think fit, I will remove all 
the cannon and other munitions of war to Gonzales and 
Copano, blow up the Alamo and abandon the place, as it 
will be impossible to keep up the station with volun- 
teers." ^ 

Colonel Bowie reached San Antonio as quickly as pos- 
sible, for, on February 2nd, he wrote to Governor Smith 
as follows : "Relief at the post in men, money and pro- 
visions is of vital importance. The salvation of Texas 
depends on keeping Bexar out of the hands of the enemy. 
. . . Col. Neill and myself have come to the same con- 
clusion, that we will rather die in these ditches than give 
it up to the enemy. These citizens deserve our patriot- 
ism, and the public safety demands our lives rather than 
evacuate this post to the enemy. Again we call aloud for 
relief. . . . Our force is very small. The returns this 
day show only 120 men and officers. ... I have infor- 
mation just now from a friend that the force at Presidio 
is 2,000 complete." 

Colonel Travis was not then at San Antonio. On Jan- 

'This correspondence is from A History of Texas and Texans, by 
Johnson and Barker, published in 1914. 



Charming and Historic San Antonio 109 

uary 28th he wrote to Governor Smith from Bumham's 
on the Colorado: "In obedience to my orders I have 
done everything in my power to get ready to march to 
the relief of Bexar, but owing to the difficulty of getting 
horses and provisions, and owing to desertions, etc., I 
shall march to-day with only about thirty men, all regu- 
lars, except four. I shall however go on and do my duty 
if I am sacrificed, tinless I receive new orders to coim- 
termarch. . . . You have no idea of the exhausted state 
of the country — Volunteers can no longer be had or re- 
lied upon — A speedy organization, classification and draft 
of the Militia is all that can save us now. . . . The 
patriotism of a few has done much; but that is becoming 
worn down — I have strained every nerve — I have used 
my personal credit and have neither slept day nor night 
since I rec'd orders to march — and with all this exer- 
tion I have hardly been able to get horses and equipments 
for the few men I have." 

On February 12th, Travis again wrote, this time from 
Bexar: "Santa Anna . . . has issued his proclamation 
denouncing vengeance against the people of Texas, and 
threatens to exterminate every white man within its lim- 
its. This, being the frontier post, will be the first at- 
tacked. We are illy prepared for their reception, as we 
have not more than 1 50 men here and they in a very dis- 
organized state. . . . For God's sake and for the sake of 
our cotmtry, send us reinforcements. I hope you will 
send to this post at least two companies of regular troops. 
. . . Yet, should we receive no reinforcements, I am de- 
termined to fight to the last, and should Bexar fall, your 
friend will be buried beneath its ruins." 

The most famous of all the messages of Travis, and 
which has been called the most heroic document in Amer- 
ican history, is the following, which is here given in full : 



110 Texas, the Marvellous 

"COMMANDANCY OF THE AlaMO, BeXAR, 

"Feby. 24th, 1836. 

"To the People of Texas and All Americans in the 
World: 

"Fellow Citizens and Compatriots : I am besieged 
by a thousand or more of the Mexicans under Santa 
Anna. I have sustained a continued Bombardment and 
cannonade for 24 hours and have not lost a man. The 
enemy has demanded a surrender at discretion, otherwise, 
the garrison are to be put to the sword, if the fort is 
taken. I have answered the demand with a cannon shot, 
and our flag still waves proudly from the walls. / shall 
never surrender or retreat. Then, I call on you in the 
name of liberty, of patriotism, and everything dear to 
the American character, to come to our aid with all dis- 
patch. The enemy is receiving reinforcements daily, and 
will no doubt increase to three or four thousand in four 
or five days. If this call is neglected, I am determined 
to sustain myself as long as possible and die like a soldier 
who never forgets what is due to his own honoiu" and 
that of his country. VICTORY OR DEATH. 

"William Barrett Travis, 

"Lt. Col. comdt. 

"P. S. The Lord is on our side. When the enemy 
appeared in sight we had not three bushels of com. We 
have since found in deserted houses 80 to 90 bushels and 
got into the walls 20 or 30 head of Beeves. 

"Travis." 



Charming and Histo ric San Antonio 111 

In response to a note received by him, Andrew Ponton 
and thirty-two men marched from Gonzales and passed 
through the enemy's lines on the night of March ist. 
Governor Smith published an appeal in the form of a 
handbill, and sent it broadcast. On March 3rd Travis 
got through a final message, which gave an account of 
the siege up to that date. "A blood red banner," says this 
letter, "waves from the church of Bexar, and in the camp 
above us, in token that the war is one of vengeance 
against rebels. . . . Their threats have had no influence 
upon me or my men, but to make all fight with despera- 
tion, and that high-souled courage which characterizes 
the patriot, who is willing to die in defence of his coun- 
try's liberty and his own honour." He ends it with these 
words: "God and Texas — Victory or Death." I quote 
thus freely from these various messages to elucidate 
clearly the fact that the actions of these brave men were 
deliberate. Many men can be brave when suddenly con- 
fronted by an emergency, but it requires the very highest 
degree of courage and patriotism to do as these men did 
and deliberately face annihilation. 

"All who wish to leave stand in their places. Every 
man who will die with me, come across the line! Who 
will be first ?" These words, so we are told, were spoken 
by Colonel Travis.^ As he spoke the words, he drew a 

' Colonel Travis was a native of North Carolina, only twenty-eight 
years of age, and a lawyer by profession. In appearance, he was six feet 
in height, erect and manly in carriage, with blue eyes, reddish hair and a 
round face. Davy Crockett came from Tennessee. He had spent his life 
in the forests, and was known all over the frontier as a mighty hunter. He 
had served in a State legislature and also two terms in the United States 
Congress. Defeated in his ambition for a third term, Crockett came to 
Texas to try and renew his fortunes. He had arrived only about three 
weeks before the beginning of the siege of the Alamo. He dressed in buck- 
skins, wore a coonskin cap, and always carried his favorite long rifle named 
"Betsy." 



112 Texas, the Marvellous 

line on the ground with his sword. Every man leaped 
over the Hne but two, so we are told. One of these was 
James Bowie, a famous frontiersman, and he was so ill 
that he could not get up from his cot. "Boys, move my 
cot over the line," he said. Bowie was a Georgian, who 
is best known as the inventor of the knife that bears his 
name. He was about six feet tall, with fair complexion, 
and had a fierce look. But he was not quarrelsome. "He 
had a wonderful art of winning people to him, and was 
extremely prodigal of his money," we are told. One 
man, and one only, refused to cross the line, and he at- 
tempted to escape. But he was never heard of after- 
wards. 

A band of Mexicans, under Santa Anna, numbering 
about five thousand, besieged the fortress on the out- 
side. The demand for surrender on February 23rd was 
answered by Colonel Travis \vith a cannon shot. The 
flag of the Constitution of 1824 was nailed to the staff 
so that it could not be lowered. Day after day shells came 
hurtling over the walls from dawn until dark, and from 
dark to dawn. On March ist, thirty-two soldiers from 
Gonzales arrived and entered the fort. The last courier 
was sent out on March 3rd. By that time ammunition 
was running low, and the Texans seldom fired. It wa3 
not until ammunition failed that the assailants made 
any headway against the brave defenders. Santa Anna 
called a council of his officers and an assault was decided 
upon. There were to be four columns of attack. At four 
o'clock on the morning of the 6th, a Sunday, the bugle 
sounded, and the whole line advanced to the attack. The 
Texans were ready and met them with a shower of grape 
and rifle balls. Twice the assailants reeled, but each time 
they rallied. The third time an entrance was secured into 
the enclosed yard. One of their guns was captured and 



Charming and Historic Sa n Antonio 113 

I 

immediately turned upon the defenders. But the en- 
feebled garrison could not hold out against such over- 
whelming numbers. The church was the last place en- 
tered by the foe, and the few who had taken refuge there 
were soon despatched. A couple of women, two chil- 
dren, and two slaves alone remained. 

The spirit that animated the Alamo has always filled 
Texas. "Remember the Alamo !" is a cry that has never 
failed of enthusiastic response. At the time it aroused a 
sensation throughout the United States. All the details 
have never been learned, for the simple reason that not 
a single combatant of the last struggle survived to tell 
the tale, and the ofificial reports of the enemy are not 
reliable. 

Don Francisco Ruiz, the Alcalde of San Antonio, wrote 
an account, from which the following extracts are made : 

"On the 6th of March ( 1836) at 3 a. m., General Santa 
Anna at the head of 4,000 men advanced against the 
AJamo. The infantry, artillery and cavalry had formed 
about 1,000 varas from the walls of the same fortress. 
The Mexican army charged and were twice repulsed 
by the deadly fire of Travis's artillery, which resembled 
a constant thunder. At the third charge the Toluca bat- 
talion commenced to scale the walls and suffered severely. 
Out of 830 men only 130 were left alive. 

"On the north battery of the fortress convent, lay the 
lifeless body of Col. Travis on the gun carriage, shot 
only through the forehead. Towards the west, and in 
a small fort opposite the city, we found the body of Col. 
Crockett. Col. Bowie was found dead in his bed in one 
of the rooms on the south side. Santa Anna, after all 
the Mexican bodies had been taken out, ordered wood 
to be brought to burn the bodies of the Texans. He sent 
a company of dragoons with me to bring wood and dry 



114 Texas, the Marvellous 

branches from the neighbouring forests. About three 
o'clock in the afternoon of March 6, we laid the wood 
and dry branches upon which a pile of dead bodies were 
placed, more wood was piled on them and another pile 
of bodies was brought and in this manner they were all 
arranged in layers. Kindling wood was distributed 
throughout the pile and about 5 o'clock in the evening 
it was lighted. 

"The gallantry of the few Texans who defended the 
Alamo was really wondered at by the Mexican army. 
Even the generals were astonished at their vigorous re- 
sistance and how dearly victory was bought. . . . The 
men (Texans) burnt were one hundred and eighty -two. 
I was an eye-witness, for as Alcalde of San Antonio, I 
was, with some of the neighbours, collecting the dead 
bodies and placing them on the funeral pyre." 

Requiescat in pace, heroes of the Alamo ! 



CHAPTER VII 



THE MISSIONS 



The old missions erected by religious orders in some 
parts of our Southwest were the forerunners of the civi- 
lization that was to follow. To fully appreciate their 
significance one must allow his imagination to run back a 
century or two, and try to picture to oneself conditions 
as they then existed. The adventurers who first visited 
this part of the New World had two objects in view. The 
first was to add to the new dominions of their sovereigns; 
the second to extend the Christian religion. The estab- 
lishment of missions accomplished both these purposes. 
It gave possession of the country, and at the same time 
provided for the conversion of the aborigines. 

The missions of Texas are probably not so well known 
as the similar institutions of California. They are, never- 
theless, almost speaking monuments of the early history 
of the marvellous State of Texas, just as are those in 
California of the early history of that great State. At 
that time the wide-stretching plains of Texas were dotted 
with the wigwams of the wandering Indian tribes. Un- 
like the peaceful Pueblo Indians of New Mexico, who 
were easily Christianized and who made little trouble 
for the early missionaries, the Indians of Texas belonged 
to those nomadic and savage tribes which have never 
yet been Christianized. The most troublesome were the 
Comanches and Apaches. The missionaries who went 
among them did so in great personal danger. Hence 
115 



116 Texas, the Marvellous 

it is that we find the missions which are grouped around 
San Antonio built close together for the purpose of de- 
fence and mutual aid in times of trouble, while those 
of California are separated by a day's journey. 

Together with the military posts, or presidios, which 
were established with them, the missions formed an out- 
post of Spanish power and aided in extending the do- 
main of the Golden Lions of Castile into new lands. The 
presidio, or fort, was the instrument of military occupa- 
tion. It was used when defence or the protection of arms 
was necessary. There was generally at least one for 
each exposed group of missions, and it was so located 
as to be most effective as a protection for all. If there 
was no presidio, a little guard of soldiers was generally 
stationed at the mission itself. The soldiers assigned for 
such duty, however, were generally of such a low type 
that the padres frequently preferred to be without them. 
Their outrages not only interfered with the work, but 
frequently aroused the Indians to retaliatory acts which 
endangered the safety of all. 

And yet, even if the soldiers had not contributed much 
to neutralize the efforts of the missionaries, the difficulties 
of the work would have been almost insurmountable. 
The method of confining the roving Indians, who were 
accustomed to a free and nomadic life, in pueblos in a 
condition closely approaching to slavery, and forcing 
them to perform a daily round of labour, as well as to 
attend a continuous programme of formal services, did 
not instil much love either for Christ or the Spaniards. 
They remained while gifts were abundant, but when these 
failed they disappeared. 

"In 1691," says an old writer, "the province of Asais, 
or Texas, as it was called by the Spaniards, was settled 
by some emigrants, and visited by fourteen Spanish 



The Missions 117 



monks, who were anxious to devote themselves to the 
conversion of the Indians, and a garrison and a mission 
were at that time established." The location of this estab- 
lishment cannot now be positively identified. One of the 
earliest known missions was that of Adaes, not far from 
Natchitoches. The fort here was intended as an outpost 
against the French, but the mission was designed for 
the conversion of the Indians in that neighbourhood. 
Our knowledge of the history of these grand old mis- 
sions is extremely meagre. The locations of the earliest 
ones can now hardly be identified. The Indians were 
so troublesome that frequent removals took place. Nearly 
all of them were founded by the monks of the Order of 
Saint Francis, who came up from Oueretero and Zacate- 
cas in Mexico. The task was hard. 

"It was necessary," said one of the padres who laboured 
in Texas, "first to transform these Indians into men, and 
afterwards to labour to make them Christians." How 
vastly dififerent were the conditions here than among the 
Aztec population across the Rio Grande. That non- 
resisting race at least passively received the new reli- 
gion. The Christianization, at any rate the baptizing, 
of the millions of that race is a record such as the world 
had never before witnessed. A single priest baptized 
in one day, according to his own report, five thousand 
natives, and he did not desist until he was so exhausted 
that he could not lift his hands. Another priest wrote 
that "an ordinary day's work is from ten to twenty 
thousand souls." In the course of a few years baptism 
had been administered to millions. These new converts, 
of course, were very immature Christians. They might 
be able to make the sign of the cross, and still be ignorant 
of what that symbol meant to humanity. But the im- 
portant fact is that these priests, who had laboured 



118 Texas, the Marvellous 

t 

among a pliant and receptive people, were here thrown 
out into the wilderness among a race of real savages who 
had never developed a civilization of their own. 

Not only were converts difficult to secure in Texas, but 
it was necessary to be constantly on the alert to prevent 
attack from marauding bodies of these savages. Even 
then they were not immune from disaster. In 1757 there 
was founded on the San Saba River, in what is now 
Menard County, the mission of San Saba, by a company 
of fathers from Santa Fe. For a time everything went 
well, and the Apaches maintained friendly relations with 
the ecclesiastics, although they refused to form a pueblo 
around it. At first the Apaches made various excuses, 
but finally frankly said that they preferred a wandering 
life. But the Apaches were at war with the Comanches, 
and the latter came one day and fell upon the defenceless 
missionaries during the absence of the soldiers from the 
presidio, a league and a half away. Not a priest or a 
domestic escaped the fury of the red men. This terrible 
fate of San Saba resulted in a recommendation that the 
idea of dealing with the Apaches by missions be aban- 
doned. At any rate it had been an absolute failure from 
the time of its inception. 

One of the early missions established in Texas was 
that known as San Francisco de los Tejas, which was 
founded by the padres soon after the destruction of Fort 
Saint Louis. The exact location of this mission is un- 
known, but it was somewhere between the Trinity and 
Neches rivers, and forty or fifty miles southwest of 
Nacogdoches. As the Indians refused to live in com- 
munities, and the soldiers became troublesome, its aban- 
donment was ordered by the viceroy. In 1693 ^^e padres 
buried whatever property they could not carry with them. 
In 1 71 6 the mission was revived, and a few years later 



The Missions 119 



was trails f erred to the bank of the San Antonio River. 
As the buildings of the original mission were of timber, 
all landmarks have disappeared. This was true of a num- 
ber of the earlier missions established in Eastern Texas, 
which were the earliest ones, for the lack of suitable 
stone caused the use of the more perishable materials. 
For this reason the old mission at Nacogdoches has dis- 
appeared. In the West, stone was plentiful and wood 
scarce, so that the buildings erected there were massive 
and enduring. To this fact is due the preserva- 
tion of those splendid monuments of the Mission Pe- 
riod that are found in the neighbourhood of San 
Antonio. 

It was in the year 1689 that the first representative 
of Spain arrived at the location where San Antonio is 
now located. The Indians who then lived there greeted 
the arrival of Don Alonzo de Leon and his followers with 
the cry of "Tejas! Tejas!" The natural attractions of 
this location, and the abundance of the pure water, moved 
Don Alonzo to believe that here was a site where a set- 
tlement should be established, and where a mission should 
be built to convert the savages living in the vicinity. 
This was the beginning of the string of missions for the 
worship of the Almighty and the spread of the Gospel in 
Texas. It was during the years from 1690 to 1719 that 
the most of the missions of Texas were built and made a 
part of the established church. The Alamo is the most 
noted of these missions around San Antonio, and its 
grey time-stained walls stand in the centre of the city. 
Its history has been written in the blood of the bravest 
of the brave. It was first used as a place of worship, but 
later principally served as a citadel of defence against 
the incursions of the Indians. It is probably due to 
this secular use that the name Alamo supplanted its 



120 Texas, the Marvellous 

earlier name of the religious fathers. Its history has 
been treated of elsewhere. 

The Mission Concepcion, or Nuestra Senora de la 
Purisima Concepcion de Acuna, which is situated only 
two miles from San Antonio, is generally known as the 
First Mission. After that of the Alamo, it is the most 
celebrated of any of these establishments in Texas from 
an historical standpoint, for it was one of the favoured 
spots of the Texas patriots. It has been the scene of a 
number of gatherings participated in by many of the 
heroes whose names are now venerated by the people of 
Texas. It was also the site of one of the thrilling and 
bloody contests between the Mexicans and Texas during 
the momentous times when the people of that territory 
were striving to overthrow the yoke of Mexico. 

On the 27th of October, 1835, General Austin sent 
a party of ninety men, under James Bowie and James 
W. Fannin, on a reconnoitring expedition to select a 
good location for his army near San Antonio. They 
encamped that night at a horseshoe bend in the San An- 
tonio River, near the Mission Concepcion. It was a 
strategic position, for the river and a skirt of timber 
protected the rear, and there was a depression in the 
front which constituted a sort of natural fortification. 
The Mexicans discovered the camp and attempted to 
surround it during the night. The creak of an artillery 
wheel aroused Colonel Bowie, so that when the Mexicans 
advanced the little force was prepared to receive them. 
The Mexicans fired in reckless volleys, while the Texans 
made every bullet count. They succeeded in firing their 
little four-pound cannon five times, but without effect. 
The rifles of the Texans picked off the gunners. Three 
times the Mexicans sounded the charge, but all in vain. 
The Texans hurled them back and remained masters of 



The Mission Concepcion. 



The Missions 121 



the field. Although the Mexican forces numbered fully 
four hundred, they were compelled to flee. Their casual- 
ties were greater than the entire force of Texans, while 
the latter had one man killed and none wounded. Know- 
ing that defeat meant death, and that surrender could 
not even be thought of, these Texans had fought with 
the same bravery as was afterwards shown at the Alamo. 

The Mission Concepcion was established in 1716, and 
rebuilt on its present site in 173 1. It is modelled after 
the Moorish style, which was then a favourite model 
with Spanish builders. As early as 1762 a writer dwells 
with great pride on this mission. He speaks of the beau- 
tiful architecture of the building, the finely sculptured 
images of stone, the mural decorations, the abundance of 
ornaments and the rich vestments of the priests. It has 
a square front with dome-covered belfries on either side. 
The front door is surmotinted by a curious triangle, and 
in the centre of the arch is a coat of arms. The walls are 
covered with cement, ornamented with geometric designs, 
and the floor is covered with a native tiling. There is a 
curious stone altar, and services are occasionally held 
here, but vandalism and time, the two great destroyers, 
are rapidly making a ruin of this splendid old structure. 

A few miles farther out from Mission Concepcion 
lies the Mission San Jose de Aguayo, being named in 
honour of the patron saint. Saint Joseph, and a former 
governor of Texas. It is doubtless the most imposing and 
beautiful of the several sacred edifices known as missions 
in and about San Antonio. Although the dome and 
portions of the arched roof have fallen in, San Jose still 
bears witness to the wonderful manner in which the 
Spaniards and the priests carried the art of the Old 
World into the wilderness of the New. The remarkable 
carvings which ornament the stone facings of the door- 



122 Texas, the Marvellous 

ways, and the great oak and cedar doors themselves, 
would reflect credit upon the religious establishments of 
Spain herself. A celebrated artist was sent out from 
Spain, who spent years in carving the statues and other 
ornamental work of this mission. 

The Mission San Jose was founded in 1720, and the 
construction was finished in the following eight years. 
It also stands on the right bank of the San Antonio River, 
and is located only four miles from the city of the same 
name. Like the other missions, the walls are several feet 
thick, and the doors are made of heavy oaken planking 
of massive construction. The mission is to-day wholly 
in ruins, and the ruins are the most extensive of any of 
the missions. Vandal hands have defaced some of the 
statues. One may still see the spiral stairway to the 
belfry, and the antique cedar ladder which leads to the 
belfry and was used by the monks when they wished to 
ring the bells for mass. This is one of the striking re- 
minders of the early days. After the secularization of 
the missions, this mission was discontinued and the land 
distributed to the Indians. When this mission was vis- 
ited by Lieutenant Pike in 1807, there were left hardly 
enough Indians to perform the household duties. Stand- 
ing in solitary grandeur upon a beautiful plateau, it is 
annually visited by thousands who can but admire this 
monument of the zeal and enterprise of the Franciscan 
fathers of the last century. 

The Mission San Juan de Caprisana is located at a dis- 
tance of two miles from that of San Jose, or almost six 
miles from San Antonio, and also on the bank of the 
San Antonio River. This mission was completed about 
1716, but for some reason must have been soon aban- 
doned by the friars and permitted to lapse into decay. 
It seems never to have been prosperous. The proba- 



The Missions 123 



bilities are that it was too remote from the settlements 
and the military force within the city of San Antonio, 
so that the monks and others living there were in too much 
danger from the savage Indians. Very little but ruins 
are left of this Mission San Juan, but the imposing bell 
tower and some of the moss-grown walls remain 
to impress the visitor with the grandeur that once ex- 
isted here two centuries ago, when the cowled monksi 
and the booted and helmeted cavaliers of Spain trod 
this wilderness, and laboured to erect a bulwark of state 
and church. It was a war of conquest, in which greed 
and religion were very closely allied. 

San Francisco de la Espada (sword) is another of 
the group of missions around San Antonio. The name 
signifies that those who founded this establishment be- 
longed to the church militant, and as such were obliged 
to wield the literal as well as the spiritual sword. Time 
has not dealt gently with this sacred edifice. It was 
early abandoned and then rebuilt, but it was again re- 
linquished soon afterwards. For many years the handi- 
work of the early architect and builders has been disinte- 
grating. The queer old sword-shaped tower still rears 
itself skyward, and portions of the walls have resisted 
Time, the destroyer. It is to be hoped that the further 
encroachments of destructive influences will be arrested 
or counteracted, so that these ruins will not fall into 
absolute and irremediable decay. 

From the very beginning of the Mission Period, there 
were those who distrusted this method of colonization. 
It was not long imtil the objections were loudly out- 
spoken. In 1727, an official who made a tour of in- 
spection reported all of them in bad condition. As a 
result of his recommendation some of them were aban- 
doned when official protection and support were with- 



124 Texas, the Marvellous 

^= 

drawn. Each official visit resulted in another report 
adverse to the friars. One of the effective arguments 
against them was the great cost and the meagre results. 
The settlers were decreasing in numbers rather than in- 
creasing. It was urged that the money spent in main- 
taining these establishments could be more profitably 
employed in paying the actual expenses of the colonists 
for a number of years. But the padres were not disheart- 
ened by the official attitude, and we cannot but admire 
their courage and persistence. After the destruction of 
San Saba, the missionary activity rapidly subsided. The 
padres themselves could not make a good showing for 
their work, and could only indulge in hopes for the 
future. It was in 1794 that the order came for the secu- 
larization of the missions, and the support from the royal 
treasury was withdrawn. The process began at once, 
but it was not completed for a number of years after- 
wards. In 1812 a few Indians still dwelt around the 
missions, but they were finally dispersed by the Spanish 
government. 

Let us look for a moment at the life that was lived 
at these establishments. The Indians attached to the 
missions were reduced almost to the condition of menials. 
The attitude of the Spaniards toward them is well ex- 
pressed by the temi used to describe them. This was 
Indios reducidos, or "reduced Indians," to distinguish 
them from the Indios hravos. By the Spanish law they 
could be detained in the pueblos by force, and, if they ran 
away, could be brought back forcibly. In 1762, there 
were probably twenty-five hundred Indians connected 
with the San Antonio missions. Twenty years later there 
were not more than five hundred. The following descrip- 
tion of the village connected with the Mission Concepcion, 
near San Antonio, is most interesting and enlightening 



The Missions 125 



as to the common life at the missions; it is translated 
from a report of the missionaries in 1 762 : 

"The pueblo is composed of two rows of stone houses 
and huts in which the Indians live, which are furnished 
with boilers, flat earthen pans, pots, and other domestic 
utensils, the pueblo being also surrounded by a wall for 
its protection and defence. It has its inclosed fields, the 
necessary supplies of water, a flowing irrigation ditch 
with its stone dam, and a ranch with its dwellings for 
the families who look after its two hundred mares, one 
hundred and ten horses, six hundred and ten head of 
cattle, and twenty-two hundred head of goats and sheep. 

"Every day all the Indians recite in concert the text 
of the Christian doctrine according to the catechism of 
Ripalda, in the morning before work and in the evening 
after it. Three or four times a week the ministers in- 
struct their Indians, with reference to the same text of 
the catechism, in the mysteries of our holy faith, and the 
obligations of Christians, with similes and arguments 
adapted to their inexpressible rusticity. . . . All those 
who are of sufficient age confess and receive the sacra- 
ment, according to their respective ability to understand, 
during Lent cUid on any festivals when they wish. . . . 
The missionaries have paid special attention to the tem- 
poral assistance of the Indians, both because this is their 
personal business, and because it is one of the most im- 
portant means of subsistence for those who live at the 
missions, and for the attraction of those who inhabit the 
woods, who observe and consider the advantages the 
others enjoy. 

"The corn crop is consumed by giving the Indians what 
they need for all purposes; and they are also furnished 
beans, pumpkins, watermelons, melons, pepper, salt, and 
sugar, which is made from cane that they take care to 



126 Texas, the Marvellous 

plant at each mission annually, because this is the best 
thing to regale the Indians and the most pleasing to their 
appetite. . . . The horses are used in looking after the 
cattle, gathering the flocks, and in other services of the 
missions to which they belong; most of them being lost 
or stolen, either by enemies or by the Indians of the mis- 
sions themselves when they escape. The Indians are 
assisted, when they are sick, with medicines which this 
country furnishes, and some which are brought in for 
the purpose. They are visited by the fathers and by other 
persons who have been charged with the care of them; 
and in serious cases they are fed from the kitchen of the 
fathers, and in all they are relieved from work. 

"The labour of the Indians is to plant the fields, look 
after the cattle, to water the crops, to clear away weeds, 
and to gather their grain, to erect their dwellings, and 
other buildings of the missions to which the community 
attends ; but with such slowness and carelessness that it is 
always necessary for some Spaniard to be directing them, 
and four of them are not sufficient for what could be done 
by one. They work, with a lack of energy corresponding 
to their inborn laziness, some at weaving and in the 
forges, and others as carpenters and bricklayers, in which 
trades instruction has been furnished them by the mis- 
sionaries with no small endeavour for their comfort. 
They have been provided also with the proper tools for 
all these occupations. The employment of the women 
and children is to spin with malacates, and to comb cot- 
ton. All this labour constitutes no impediment to their 
spiritual welfare or the help due their families, but is 
very moderate and comfortable to their want of culture, 
little talent, and great sloth." 



CHAPTER VIII 

HOUSTON AND SAN JACINTO 

"Site of capital of the Republic of Texas, 1837-38, '39 
and '42. Commemorating da3'S when after her glorious 
struggle Texas stood an independent nation." 

This inscription on a tablet placed at the entrance to 
the leading hotel in Houston discloses the pretension that 
this city has to eminence. It must not be forgotten that 
Texas for almost ten years was a full-fledged Republic 
with a complete government. She maintained diplomatic 
representatives in the courts of a number of European 
countries and at Washington. In the capitol at Austin 
are preserved a number of original treaties negotiated 
between that Republic and these governments. They are 
all inscribed in longhand, and a heavy seal, weighing sev- 
eral pounds, is attached to them. 

The city of Houston came into existence in August, 
1836. It was in the same year that the Texas Congress, 
which was then a sort of perambulating body, having 
shifted from place to place according to the exigencies 
of the occasion, decided to establish the capital at the 
newly-founded settlement until 1840. After Texas had 
achieved her independence, the possession of the seat of 
government was a prize eagerly contended for by nearly 
all the actual and prospective municipalities, within the 
limits of actual occupation. Individuals and companies 
which were prospecting town sites extended proffers for 
the capital, because of the prestige this would bestow. 
127 



128 Texas, the Marvellous 

Texas commerce had been only slightly developed, and 
it was obvious that the capital city, owing to its political 
importance, would have superior advantages over its 
rivals. 

The city was located on Buffalo Bayou, and was ap- 
propriately named after General Sam Houston, who had 
just been elected President. The Aliens, who were pro- 
moting the town, had agreed to erect the capitol at their 
own expense. These men had purchased more than two 
square miles of land for about what one foot front would 
now bring in the heart of the city. Circulars were issued 
with drawings representing a large city, showing 
churches, court house, market-house and other improve- 
ments, at a time when the site was nothing more than 
a camp. The first sale of town lots was held January 
19, 1837, and many were attracted to it as the first per- 
manent capital. Among these were many men around 
whom history has since thrown its aureola. The Aliens 
fulfilled their contract and erected a frame building for 
the government offices, which was afterwards converted 
into a hotel upon the removal of the seat of government. 

Texas was by this time attracting tlie attention of the 
whole world. The heroism of those who had fallen at 
the Alamo, the brutal massacre at Goliad, and the ac- 
complishments of the Texans in the other skirmishes, 
which had culminated in the remarkable victory of San 
Jacinto, with resulting freedom from the yoke of Mexico, 
suggested to the world the marvellous deeds of heroes 
of the past. The naturalist Audubon came here on a 
search for new varieties of birds in 1837. He writes of 
Houston in his diary, as follows : 

"We landed at Houston, the capital of Texas, drenched 
t6 the skin, and were kindly received on board the steamer 
Yellow Stone, Captain West, who gave us his stateroom 



Houston and San Jacinto 129 

to change our clothes, and furnished us refreshments and 
dinner. The Buffalo Bayou had risen about six feet, 
and the neighbouring prairies were partly covered with 
water : there was a wild and desolate look cast on the sur- 
rounding scenery. We had already passed two little girls 
encamped on the bank of the bayou under the cover of a 
few clap-boards, cooking a scanty meal; shanties, car- 
goes of hogsheads, barrels, etc., were spread about the 
landing; and Indians drunk and hallooing were stumbling 
about in the mud in every direction. These poor beings 
had come here to enter into a treaty proposed by the 
whites ; many of them were young and well looking, and 
with far less decorations than I have seen before on such 
occasions. The chief of the tribe is an old and corpulent 
man. 

"We walked toward the President's house, accom- 
panied b)'^ the Secretary of the Navy, and as soon as we 
rose above the bank we saw before us a level of far- 
extending prairie, destitute of timber and rather poor 
soil. Houses, half finished, and most of them without 
roofs, tents, and a liberty pole, with the capitol, were all 
exhibited to our view at once. We approached the Presi- 
dent's mansion, however, wading in water above our 
ankles. This abode of President Houston is a small log 
house, consisting of two rooms and a passage through, 
after the Southern fashion. The moment we stepped 
over the threshold, on the right hand of the passage, we 
found ourselves ushered into what in other countries 
would be called the ante-chamber ; the ground floor, how- 
ever, was muddy and filthy, a large fire was burning, and 
a small table, covered with paper and writing materials, 
was in the centre; camp beds, trunks, and different ma- 
terials were strewed around the room. We were at once 
presented to several members of the Cabinet, some of 



130 Texas, the Marvellous 

whom bore the stamp of men of intellectual ability, 
simple, though bold, in their general appearance. 

"We first caught sight of President Houston as he 
walked from one of the grog-shops, where he had been 
to stop the sale of ardent spirits. We reached his abode 
before him, but he soon came, and we were presented to 
his Excellency. He was dressed in a fancy velvet coat 
and trousers trimmed with broad gold lace, and around 
his neck was tied a cravat somewhat in the style of '76. 
He received us kindly, was desirous of retaining us for 
a while, and offered us every facility in his power. He 
at once removed us from the ante-room to his private 
chamber, which, by the way, was not much cleaner than 
the former. We were severally introduced by him to the 
different members of his Cabinet and Staff, and at once 
asked to drink grog with him, which we did, wishing 
success to the new Republic. Our talk was short, but 
the impression which was made on our mind at the time 
by himself, his officers, and the place of his abode can 
never be forgotten." 

The initial capitol of the Government here in Houston 
was a small log house which has disappeared, but the 
residence of the President, now nothing more than a small 
unpretentious clapboard house with only two rooms, still 
survives the changes of time, in a dilapidated condition. 
Garbed in a scarlet waistcoat, and boots with red tops 
and finished at the heels with silver spurs, Houston cer- 
tainly made an impressive picture for the head of a Re- 
public in the wilderness. When the first diplomatic agent 
from England arrived in Houston, and found the Presi- 
dent of the Republic to which he was accredited living 
in such unpretentious quarters, he was indeed aston- 
ished, and doubtless much disappointed. 

Houston at that time, although the capital of an inde- 



Houston and San Jacinto 131 

pendent republic, was unworthy the name of a town, 
for nothing more than tents and temporary shanties of 
clapboards and pine poles were scattered along the banks 
of the bayou. Even the substantial log cabins, which were 
so commonly built by the pioneers, were rare. The howl- 
ing of the wolves and wildcats, so we are informed by 
those who dwelt there at that time, was common, and the 
settler usually kept his shotgun convenient to use if occa- 
sion arose. 

In the first issue of the Telegraph, the first newspaper 
established in the city, a racy account of the editor's ex- 
periences is given. He says : "Fortunately, we have 
succeeded in renting a shanty, which, although like the 
capitol in this place, is 



"Without a roof and without a floor. 
Without window and without a door. 



"N. B. : Our troubles have not yet ended. The shanty 
is falling about our ears, two massive beams have dropped 
down upon the stands, made a disgusting pi, and have 
driven the workmen to seek safety outside. The devil 
alone looks smiling at the mischief." 

Gradually the wolves, the wildcats, and the Indians dis- 
appeared, however, and a new order arose in Houston. 
The houses increased in number and waxed larger, streets 
of generous width were laid out; flower gardens began 
to bloom, and shade trees were planted. The old-fash- 
ioned, white-topped wagons, with their many yokes of 
oxen, were a distinguishing feature of Houston. In 
the early days these wagons were the sole means of 
communication with the rest of the State and with the 
adjoining States, for it was many years before the last 
spike of the first railroad was driven. The teamsters 



132 Texas, the Marvellous 

were men of great courage and fortitude, for they not 
only had to brave the storms but the danger of lurking 
beasts and stealthy Indians. 

In their lifetime Sam Houston and Stephen Austin, 
two of the most noted men in the early history of Texas, 
were bitter rivals. Their ideas in many things did not 
harmonize. Houston was rather domineering and could 
not brook opposition. He was naturally very anxious that 
the city named after him should be the permanent capital ; 
but the friends of Austin, after his death, determined 
to have the permanent capital named in his honour. The 
insufficiency of the buildings, the unhealthfulness of the 
situation, and the muddy condition of the streets were all 
urged as reasons for the removal of the seat of gov- 
ernment, even before the temporary limit had expired. 
Thus it was that about the middle of September, 1838, 
the archives of the government were loaded on wagons 
and hauled to Austin, while the President and his cabinet 
followed soon afterwards. It was years after this be- 
fore the first sidewalk was laid in this proud city. 

Houston has forged ahead rapidly in the last few years, 
and has become a great and important commercial city. 
It is now the third city in Texas, and promises to achieve 
even greater distinction. It is a city that pleases the eye, 
for the streets have generous width, and the recent addi- 
tions have been designed with an eye for the artistic. 
I have never yet visited a city where the new additions 
demanded by city growth have been given greater atten- 
tion to their artistic development than have those in this 
growing municipality. They are able to produce shrub- 
bery and all varieties of ornamental plants much more 
quickly than a city of the North, for the winters are 
very mild and vegetation will grow practically throughout 
the entire year. The ornamental palms thrive, and the 



Houston and San Jacinto 133 

trees are particularly beautified by the hanging moss, 
which, to me, is most charming. 

Houston is a city for skyscrapers, for Houston lays 
claim to more "cloud-scratchers," as the Germans desig- 
nate them, of six stories and over, in proportion to its 
population, than any other city in the world. I would 
not be surprised if its claim is true. But it is also a city 
of splendid churches and excellent educational advan- 
tages. One of the features of the city is the magnificent 
municipal auditorium, erected a few years ago at a cost 
of a quarter of a million dollars. It provides a splen- 
did place for conventions and public entertainments at 
all times. 

The Rice Institute has been established with an initial 
endowment of ten million dollars, which distinguishes it 
as one of the opulent educational institutions of the 
country. It was established by the late William Marsh 
Rice, whose murder by his valet a number O'f years ago 
was one of the sensations of the time. It is a university 
of liberal and technical training in which the scientific 
side is given the greatest stress. The endowment is 
placed in the hands of a self-perpetuating board of seven 
life members, and the terms are liberal. A site of three 
hundred acres directly south of the city has been secured, 
and several buildings have been erected. A comprehen- 
sive plan has been selected for further growth. Men and 
■women are admitted on an equal footing, and, for the 
present at least, there is neither tuition nor fee. A splen- 
did staff has been selected, for the large endowment gave 
the Rice Institute a great advantage over many older 
schools that are struggling along with limited funds. The 
standard is high, and it will undoubtedly develop into 
one of the really noteworthy scientific institutions of the 
country, and the South in particular. Opportunity is 



134 Texas, the Marvellous 

written all over the Southwest, and The Rice Institute 
will mean a great deal in its future development. 

The early rivalry of Houston was with Galveston, its 
near neighbour. Before the days of railroads the only 
outlet was by water, and that meant rendering tribute 
to Galveston. Barges floated down Buffalo Bayou to that 
Gulf port, but still Houston was at a tremendous dis- 
advantage. Had it not been for the advent of railroads, 
and the successful efforts of her business men in estab- 
lishing Houston as a centre for the iron highways, that 
city would doubtless have remained as unimportant as 
is Harrisburg to-day. This made it a centre of distribu- 
tion for a large district, even before the War of the Rebel- 
lion. These early railroads, however, were short roads 
which led to nowhere, and Houston was still commercially 
dependent upon Galveston. 

The citizens of Houston were still unsatisfied. As 
Buffalo Bayou had been the only water outlet for the city 
since its foundation, they began to look upon it with 
longing eyes. Government engineers reported favourably 
on the feasibility of utilizing it as a ship canal. Congress 
appropriated a million and a quarter dollars, and the 
county voted an equal amount. The enterprise of Hous- 
ton is revealed in the construction of a ship canal to 
the Gulf, a distance of almost fifty miles. This is longer 
than the Panama Canal, but did not present the engineer- 
ing problems of that international waterway. This canal 
constitutes Houston an ocean port, for the channel is 
deep enough to accommodate any vessel that sails the 
Gulf of Mexico. It brings the ocean to her very doors. 
She has accomplished this by dredging, deepening and 
widening an old sluggish channel. This makes Houston 
the farthest inland harbour in the United States. 

The Houston ship canal is twice as long as that which 



Houston and San Jacinto 135 

connects Manchester with the sea, and has rendered that 
town a rival of Liverpool. It will float vessels of twenty- 
five feet draft from the Gulf to the basin just outside the 
city. When the project was first initiated, government 
engineers went over the route and submitted favourable 
reports. Congress appropriated several millions of dol- 
lars and undertook the work of dredging. To this appro- 
priation, Houston added a large sum. At least three 
million will be expended by the city on the basin, the 
wharves, and the other facilities which are necessary to 
a seaport harbour before the plans are completed. All of 
this, you understand, will be municipally owned. The 
work has progressed quietly and without bluster, so that 
it will be news to many when they learn that Houston is 
no longer an inland city, but is a full-fledged ocean port. 
The importance of Houston as a port is shown by the 
statement that enough cotton passes through it in one 
year to manufacture a garment for every man, woman 
and child in the entire world. 

This county, under the Spanish regime and nomen- 
clature, was the municipality of Harrisburg. When the 
Republic was established, it was made a county and the 
name changed to Harris. But the little town of Harris- 
burg still remains in a comatose condition just outside 
of Houston. It was named after one of the prominent 
early settlers of this section. Under President Bur^iet 
this settlement became the temporary capital until the 
day before the arrival of Santa Anna. The twenty stores, 
houses, and factories were all burned by that villainous 
general. But the settlers returned, and it arose from the 
ashes. The superior enterprise of the citizens of Hous- 
ton, however, secured the railroads, and Harrisburg is 
now only an unimportant suburb of its greater neighbour. 

Just a few miles from Houston lies one of the most 



136 Texas, the Marvellous 

historic spots in the State of Texas. It is the battlefield 
of San Jacinto, and is on the bank of the ship channel 
leading to the Gulf. The site has now been developed 
into a beautiful park and playground, which is visited 
by thousands of people every year. One of the splendid 
shell roads for which this county is noted leads out to 
the park, which affords a delightful drive by automobile. 
Monuments and markers indicate the position of the 
troops of both contending parties in this decisive engage- 
ment. Most Americans are but sHghtly acquainted with 
the history of the heroic struggle of Texas for liberty 
from the oppression of Mexico. The Battle of San Ja- 
cinto occurred after the slaughter at the Alamo, and the 
equally brutal butchery at Goliad. It made possible the 
Republic of Texas. 

General Houston, in charge of the Texas forces, had 
retreated before the onward march of Santa Anna, who 
was bent on annihilating the Texans. He at first fell 
back to the Colorado, and then decided to retreat to the 
Brazos River. The wildest confusion seized the whole 
of this country. The forces of the Mexican general were 
flushed with victory, and they destroyed everything in 
their pathway as they charged across the country. Up 
to that time the Mexican leader had never sufifered defeat. 
The engagement would doubtless have occurred a few 
days earlier, had not Santa Anna learned that Harris- 
burg was undefended. Abandoning his original plan, 
he hastened to this town, hoping to capture the President 
and other officials. Arriving there too late, he was in- 
formed that the Government had departed for Galveston 
Island that very morning. 

On the night of April 19th, 1836, the Texans had 
bivouacked in the timber less than a mile from the Mexi- 
cans, whose bugles they could plainly hear. They had 



Houston and San Jacinto 137 

crossed over Buffalo Bayou, a narrow but deep stream, 
which was then running bank full. The grove was of 
heavy live oak, hung with weeping Spanish moss and 
free from underbrush. To the left was the San Jacinto 
River, and at their back was the bayou. In front ex- 
tended an open prairie for a couple of miles, which was 
bounded on one side by a marsh. In all there were about 
seven hundred and eighty-three men under General Hous- 
ton. On the following day the first collision took place 
between the opposing forces. When Santa Anna learned 
that the Texans were near at hand, he is said to have 
become very much excited. In the afternoon of that 
day some of Houston's pickets were discovered, and a 
little skirmishing followed. But nothing decisive oc- 
curred on this day. Santa Anna established a new camp, 
and erected hastily constructed breastworks. 

The morning of the 2ist rose bright and cloudless. 
The Texans impatiently awaited the order for battle. 
They could see reinforcements advancing to the Mexican 
lines. At a council of war, called about midday, it was 
decided to postpone the engagement until the following 
morning. But this decision was sullenly received by the 
impatient troops, and the question was then submitted 
directly to them. The decision was in favour of imme- 
diate attack. It was not until half-past three that Hous- 
ton gave orders for the troops to be formed in line of 
battle. The only music which the Texan army had was 
a solitary drum and fife. They struck up the air. Will 
You Come to the Bower? Two brass, six-pounder can- 
non, which had been sent from Cincinnati, and named 
"The Twin Sisters," were advantageously placed. Hous- 
ton placed himself in the centre of his forces. Thus it 
was that the Texans advanced toward the improvised 
breastworks of Santa Anna. Deaf Smith had been com- 



138 Texas, the Marvellous 

missioned by Houston to destroy Vince's bridge, so 
as to cut off one source of the enemy's retreat, and also 
to hinder the approach of any additional reinforcements.* 

It must be remembered that here was the merchant, 
who had but recently stepped from behind the counter. 
He stood side by side with the farmer, who had hastily 
abandoned his plough in the field, and the doctor, who had 
probably brought his drugs and pills with him. All 
these men were handling a long rifle, with shotpouch and 
powderhorn over the shoulder, instead of the more 
familiar implements of their trade. When Houston en- 
deavoured to effect a little better discipline into his ranks, 
those volunteers did not take kindly to restraint. They 
had but Httle respect for the enemy's fighting ability, and 
chafed at every delay of the commander. The cowards 
and scalawags had long since deserted this body of 
determined men. All were there in the presence of a 
well-disciplined army, with but one object in view — 
freedom from Mexican tyranny. 

"Remember the Alamo!" and "Remember Goliad!" 
were the battle cries. The Mexicans outnumbered the 
Texans at least two to one. But Santa Anna had given 
up all idea of an attack that day, and was enjoying a 
siesta in his tent. Many of the other officers were dozing. 
When the Texan army was seen approaching in battle 
array, there was the greatest alarm and confusion. Santa 
Anna ran out of his tent and ordered his men to lie 
down. The "Twin Sisters" spoke sharply and often. 

' Deaf Smith is one of the unique characters of Texas. "This singular 
individual," said the Houston Telegraph, "was one whose name bears with 
it more of respect than sounding titles. Major, Colonel, General, sink into 
insignificance before the simple name of Deaf Smith. That name is identi- 
fied with the battlefields of Texas. His eulogy is inseparably interwoven 
with the most thrilling annals of our country." He survived San Jacinto 
only a Uttle more than a year. 



Houston and San Jacinto 139 

The Mexicans had barely time to seize their muskets and 
give a scattering volley before the charging line was over 
the barricade. The Texans clubbed their rifles and drew 
their bowie knives. They captured the Mexican cannon, 
and turned them into the ranks of the Mexicans them- 
selves. The fight lasted but eighteen minutes, when the 
Mexicans fled, having been completely routed. 

The losses among the Mexicans exceeded six hundred 
in number, and those who surrendered almost equalled 
in number the entire forces of the victors. Many fled 
into the morass and became bogged in the quagmire, 
where they were despatched by the infuriated Texans. 
Some fled over the prairie, but they were pursued by 
fleeter steps than their own. A few escaped by swimming 
across Buffalo Bayou. Some would throw up their arms 
and cry : "Me no Alamo !" Many arms and much camp 
equipage, together with a small sum of cash, fell into the 
hands of the Texans as booty. The soldiers voted two 
thousand dollars for the national navy, and distributed 
the rest among themselves. They received about seven 
dollars and fifty cents each, which was all the compensa- 
tion paid them for the entire campaign. The losses of 
Houston's army were almost infinitesimal. Two were 
killed and twenty-three wounded. 

On the day after the battle a scouting party observed 
a man crouching in the tall grass and covering his head 
with a blanket. His horse had mired, and he had con- 
tinued his flight on foot. He was clad in the soiled suit 
of an ordinary Mexican soldier, consisting of linen 
trousers, a blue cotton jacket, a cap, and red worsted 
slippers. Covering his head was a dilapidated straw hat, 
but it was observed that his shirt was of the finest linen, 
and in it were gold buttons. Upon being questioned, the 
captive finally admitted that he was Santa Anna, and re- 



140 Texas, the Marvellous 

quested to be taken to the residence of General Houston. 
The latter was then reclining on a pallet under a large 
tree, little more distinguished in appearance than his cap- 
tive, while a surgeon was dressing a wound in his leg. 
His horse had been killed beneath him, and he himself 
had been shot through the ankle. 

As soon as the news spread that the famous and infa- 
mous Mexican commander was a prisoner, curiosity drew 
a large crowd whose only object was to catch a glimpse 
of him. Santa Anna himself was very much disturbed 
for fear that the spirit of revenge would animate these 
men, whose hearts were still bleeding over his misdeeds. 

"I am General Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna, Presi- 
dent of the Mexican Republic, and I claim to be a prisoner 
of war, at your disposal. . . . That man may consider 
himself born to no common destiny who has conquered 
the Napoleon of the West. It now remains for him to be 
generous to the vanquished." 

"You should have remembered that at the Alamo," 
rejoined Houston. Santa Anna then endeavoured to 
excuse himself for that action. 

General Houston, instead of wreaking retribution upon 
the head of the Mexican chief, who was also president 
of the Mexicans, sent him to honourable captivity. An 
armistice was arranged, according to which the Mexican 
troops were to withdraw beyond the Rio Grande. By a 
secret treaty Santa Anna was to be released on his solemn 
promise to use his influence to secure a recognition of 
Texan independence. Because of the indignant protests 
of the enraged army, however, this was abandoned by the 
Government, and he remained a prisoner for several 
months. At last he was released and sent to Washington. 
It has long been a question whether Houston acted wisely 
in being so magnanimous, for Santa Anna caused a great 



Houston and San Jacinto 141 

deal of trouble for his own country as well as ours during 
the remaining years of his life. 

To those who believe in retribution even in this life, I 
would give a picture of this man by Rev. William Butler, 
who visited Santa Anna about a year before his death 
on the 20th of June, 1876: 

"Santa Anna was living in an obscure street, neglected 
and forgotten by all parties. On entering the apartment 
we found the old man sitting on a sofa, behind which 
hung a picture of his wife, 'her serene highness, Dolores 
Tosta de Santa Anna,' arrayed as a vice-queen. The 
magnificence of the painting contrasted sadly with the 
poverty-stricken aspect of the room and furniture. To 
him, however, this could make but little difference, as 
we soon saw that he was totally blind as well as feeble 
and broken in spirit, with a tendency to mental weak- 
ness." He was buried in the cemetery at Guadalupe, 
just outside the Mexican capital, without honours or 
recognition by the Government, and his remains still rest 
there. As I gazed upon his tomb, I could not help think- 
ing of the horrible events in the history of Texas with 
which his name is associated. 



CHAPTER IX 

FOLLOWING THE SETTING SUN 

"If I owned hell and Texas, I would rent Texas and 
live in the other place." This is a statement attributed 
to that picturesque old warrior, Phil Sheridan. His 
acquaintance with Texas was while a lieutenant on duty 
on the frontier of that frontier State prior to the Civil 
War. Taking this statement, put in such an epigram- 
matic way, as their clue, many correspondents and news- 
mongers have coloured their pictures of Texas in har- 
mony with it. That State has likewise been depicted as 
the abiding place of the most diabolical villains that the 
fertile brain of the most extravagant writer of fiction has 
been able to conceive. But there is a closed season for 
"bad men" in Texas now, and that "off" season extends 
from January ist to December 31st of each year. If the 
county officials become a little remiss in their duties, the 
Texas Rangers may be trusted to put on the finishing 
touches. Not only is gun-carrying tabooed, but you can- 
not even play an innocent little game of "seven-up" on 
a train in Texas. 

Dry, did you say? Well, it is somewhat anhydrous 
in big sections of the map. Texas, let me inform you, is 
one of the driest States in the Union. In the six hundred 
miles from San Antonio to El Paso there is scarcely a 
"wet spot." You can travel for two hundred miles with- 
out discovering a single oasis for irrigating a parched 
throat. You might think that the counties in this arid 
142 



Following the Setting Sun 143 

belt would welcome every sort of moisture, even of the 
distilled and fermented kind. But they do not. Hop 
juice and com extract have gone the same way as the 
"bad man." Coca cola is about the strongest mixture 
you can get, and I must say that it is quite popular. The 
thirsty inhabitants line up at the soda fountains like 
they formerly did at the bars, but somehow their feet 
never get intorted, and they are always able to navigate 
homewards by the means of locomotion with which they 
were endowed by nature. 

The cowboy saves his money now after pay day, so I 
am told, for only in isolated instances can he ride pell- 
mell to a nearby town and hold carousal with himself, like 
in the days of old. These southwestern counties and the 
Panhandle district, the wildest and wooliest parts of 
Texas yet remaining, are the strongholds of prohibition, 
while the eastern section, that lying nearest to the "effete" 
and cultured East, is where one still finds the means of 
gratifying his thirst for alcoholic stimulants without 
restraint or subterfuge. 

"Oh, no, we are not sorry that the cowboys with the 
gun and the unquenchable thirst are gone," said a rancher. 
"In their place we have a finer lot, who will do more and 
stand more than the old ones. They're an odd lot of 
ducks, but we couldn't do without them." 

In going west from San Antonio the traveller gradually 
approaches the most arid section of the State. Ranching 
soon overshadows all principal industry. Large herds 
of cattle will be seen, interspersed with sheep or goats. 
The grass which uprears itself here in clumps is extreme- 
ly nourishing and palatable. Stock eagerly eat it, and it 
grows with great vigour and beauty over these prairies 
and valleys. Even a frost does not seem to kill it or ren- 
der it unpalatable to grazing animals, and it is owing to 



144 Texas, the Marvellous 

this fact that cattlemen have succeeded so well through- 
out all this territory. 

"A farm of one section is small here," said a Texan to 
me. "Ten to fifty sections are far more common." 

The mesquite which, near San Antonio, is large and 
thick, gradually becomes dwarfed and thinner. This mes- 
quite is said to be one of the finest of hardwoods, and is' 
used in a great many ways. The small size and twisted 
contour of the trunk, however, bars it from many uses 
to which it would be well adapted. Mixed with other 
thorny shrubs as an undergrowth, all together called 
chaparral, it frequently forms over acres together an 
almost impenetrable mass when there has been no effort 
at clearing. The prickly pear is quite thickly scattered 
over the ground in many places, and one will find many 
other plants which grow only where rain is infrequent. 

It is not long after San Antonio has faded from view 
until the Sunset Route reaches the lands occupied by 
the old Castro Colony, which is mentioned elsewhere. 
D'Hanis was likewise a settlement of Alsatian colonists- 
Uvalde and Del Rio (meaning "by the river") are fairly 
good sized county towns, which are passed on the journey 
toward the disappearing sun. Uvalde County for a long 
time occupied a prominent position on the southwestern 
frontier. It was infested with Indians, and they, to- 
gether with American and Mexican outlaws, made it an 
insecure dwelling place until the construction of the 
railroad introduced settled conditions. 

The Canyon de Uvalde was a favourite resort for the 
savages, since it provided them with shelter and a natural 
defence. Just a few miles south of the city of Uvalde was 
located Fort Inge, which was an important military post 
in the middle of the last century. The mail routes to 
the more distant west and to Mexico here intersected, and 



Following the Setting Sun 145 

the pony express riders were a common sight in Uvalde. 
It was under the protection of this fort that the first set- 
tlers located in this neighbourhood in 1851. The city is 
now a flourishing municipality, and is a commercial cen- 
tre for the great stock country all about. More honey 
is said to be shipped from here than any other city in 
the United States, for the bees make a most excellent 
honey from the flowers of the range. 

Many were the forts scattered over this western coun- 
try at one time or another. One of these interesting ad- 
vance outposts of the Anglo-American occupation to 
follow was that known as Camp Verde, which may still 
be found as the name of a small place in Kerr County, 
a little north of Uvalde. This old and historic frontier 
post was established in 1855, and it is a reminder of one 
of the strangest innovations ever attempted by our Gov- 
ernment. Forty camels were imported from the Orient, 
together with a dozen Armenian drivers and their fami- 
lies. A sketch had been made of a caravansary in Asia 
Minor, and this camp was reproduced at Camp Verde 
in every minute particular. It was constructed in a 
rectangular shape, except the north wall which made an 
angle, the distance from each corner of this angle being 
exactly one hundred and fifty feet. This wall was sixteen 
feet high and made of concrete and timber, the latter 
having been transported all the way from Florida. 

The idea of employing camels on the Texas frontier 
was an idea which had its inception with Jefferson Davis. 
He believed that camels could cross the desert country 
with more ease and quicker than horses. Because they 
could go longer without water, their employment would 
greatly facilitate the carrying of despatches and follow- 
ing of the Indians, so he represented. This might have 
proved true, if the western country had consisted of 



146 Texas, the Marvellous 

desert sand. Camp Verde, however, was situated in a 
mountainous and rocky country, over which the camel 
with his soft and spongy feet could make but little prog- 
ress. The tough little Spanish pony could outdistance 
him. The camels, being a failure so far as following In- 
dians was, concerned, were sold in 1868. The forty had 
increased at that time until the original number was more 
than doubled. A few of the camels escaped to the Llano 
Estacado, and it is said that their descendants are still 
occasionally seen in that section of Texas and New 
Mexico. Many stories are told of the frights experienced 
by the Indians and white men when these strange appari- 
tions came unexpectedly upon them. 

Del Rio is rather an attractive place, only a couple of 
miles from the Mexican border. An abundant supply of 
excellent water is provided by a number of large flowing 
springs. The largest spring is about fifty feet across, 
and an almost incredible amount of water issues from it. 
It was the neighbourhood of such an unfailing supply of 
pure water that determined the first settlements here. 
These settlements gradually grew into the present city. 
At the present time Mexicans seem to predominate among 
the population. Away from the valleys here in the great 
Valverde County, the general surface is rough and 
broken, but in the valleys there is considerable land that 
will lend itself to irrigation. Development by irrigation 
on a considerable scale has been initiated with water 
from the Rio Grande, and it promises considerable suc- 
cess here as at other places along that international water- 
way. 

Have you, gentle reader, been harbouring the belief 
that the whole of Texas was either level or rolling prai- 
rie? Then let me proceed to dispel this phantasy. Pro- 
ceeding westward in obedience to the command given 



Following the Setting Sun 147 

young men some time ago, we find that there is a gradual 
rise in the level of the land. The traveller soon learns 
that Texas is not all prairie, and that the mountain 
peaks here will greatly overtop anything east of the Mis- 
sissippi. Some of the scenery, as the train winds around 
the peaks and across the valleys, is exceedingly beautiful. 
It may not equal, and certainly does not transcend, the 
Rockies in sublimity and grandeur, but these mountains 
of Texas possess a beauty and charm all their own. The 
Rockies have an awfulness and a terribleness that almost 
repel the onlooker, as he might shrink from an impending 
calamity, but these mountains attract and charm. At 
Paisano the divide is crossed at an altitude of more than 
five thousand feet. At Alpine and beyond, there are 
peaks in sight which are uplifted from one mile to two 
miles above sea level. With broad and level valleys 
spread out between them, these great mountains standing 
out against the distant horizon look wonderfully impres- 
sive in the translucent atmosphere of this region. 

The territorial divisions along the upper Rio Grande 
are all princely in dimensions. El Paso County has 
been reduced once or twice, but it is still larger than Con- 
necticut. Presidio County, just below, is greater in extent 
than Delaware, and Brewster County is about the same. 
But the population is not in proportion to the amplitude. 
The people do not number much more than two to the 
square mile, of whom about one-half are genuine Mexi- 
cans. Outside of some irrigation along the rivers, there 
is little development. For instance, out of two and a 
half million acres in one of these divisions, only seven 
thousand are classed as "improved land." It is not 
difficult to see that agriculture is in its infancy. But 
large herds of cattle, sheep, horses, and goats are pastured 
and thrive exceedingly well. 



148 Texas, the Marvellous 

Brewster County contains some of the loftiest moun- 
tains to be found in Texas. There is another Grand 
Canyon here that has walls which in places rise perpen- 
dicularly almost two thousand feet. In these mountains 
and canyons and valleys considerable mineral wealth 
has been discovered. One of the largest quicksilver mines 
in the United States is in operation here, besides those 
which produce many other minerals, such as lead, iron, 
copper, and silver. Because of a lack of transportation, 
however, and an inadequate water supply, the great min- 
eral wealth has not yet been fully developed. It certainly 
required indomitable pluck and unconquerable energy to 
push the Southern Pacific railroad out across the vast 
and — the then — almost unknown plains and mountains of 
-Texas. It began with the old Galveston, Harrisburg and 
San Antonio Railroad. Mile by mile, almost foot by foot, 
struggling against difficulties seemingly insuperable, this 
railroad was pushed forward from Houston until it 
reached .San Antonio, where its engineers were greeted 
with ovations by the delighted inhabitants. Thence it 
crept westward into the sunset. But another railroad 
was also headed eastward, which likewise aimed to cross 
the expansive leagues of Texas. The outcome was a 
compromise, and the two roads became the Southern 
Pacific, by which the East and the West were again 
united. 

The nearer we approach the western boundary of Texas 
the more noticeable become the signs of aridity. A wit 
made the remark that it was so poor here a crow "would 
have to tote his rations over it." Another wag averred 
that it would take the moisture from a couple of acres to 
rust a nail. In places it might hustle an active goat to 
get a good day's feed from an acre. The sagebrush and 
the graceful Spanish bayonet are practically the only signs 



Following the Setting Sun 149 

of vegetable life at times. It is a country of barbs and 
spines and bayoneted shrubs, which tear and fret the 
hands of any who come in colHsion with them. The 
sun also sheds a glare, which accounts for the wide hats 
and the gathered wrinkles nesting at the corner of men's 
eyes, because they have been squinting at it for years. 
Nevertheless, the hundreds of windmills at work demon- 
strate the fact that water is present not far from the sur- 
face. In some of the towns a windmill will be found in 
almost every yard. As El Paso is approached the land- 
scape becomes a dreary waste, until a dozen miles away 
irrigation begins. The fertility of the soil is indicated 
by the eagerness with which it responds to the application 
of water. 

"No se Ingles" (I do not understand English), is a 
common expression heard throughout this section of 
Texas. It may come from some one who looks as white 
as 3'ou or I. He is a Mexican, but has none of the Indian 
blood in him. Isolated thatched houses are encountered 
which might come from interior Mexico. The women 
may be seen rolling and patting tortillas on the metate, 
just as they do in their native home. Strings of chili and 
garlic ornament the outside of the doorway. The don- 
keys, the pigs, and the chickens have the entree to the best 
the house affords. An equal number of lean and hungry 
dogs infest the doorway. 

Many reach El Paso via the Old Texas and Pacific 
from Dallas or Fort Worth. Not far distant from the 
latter city on the southwestern journey is the dividing 
line between the black waxy belt and West Texas. Di- 
versified farming is still followed for some distance, until 
at length the rainfall diminishes to such an extent that 
either dry farming methods or irrigation are necessary. 
Indian depredations were common here until long after 



150 Texas, the Marvellous 

the Civil War. Weatherford is quite an important town 
and railroad centre. It is rather an old place for a West 
Texas town. A writer in 1857 said of it: "Weather- 
ford, a new town and county seat, is rapidly increasing. 
Not twelve months ago the site was laid out, and yet there 
are already a courthouse in process of construction, 
and several other public buildings, one hotel, several 
stores, private dwellings, and other marks of civilization." 
To-day several railroads reach Weatherford, and it is a 
thriving little county capital. 

West of Weatherford the settlement is much more 
recent. The few settlers who were there antecedent to the 
seventies were a sort of advance guard against the forces 
of barbarism that still prevailed over the entire western 
region of Texas. Its real development has simply fol- 
lowed the railroads. As the buffalo were finally hunted 
from the plains, they were followed by great herds of 
domestic cattle and the old-time stockmen. For a few 
years these men were the supreme lords of the domain of 
these grass-covered prairies. The natural grasses would 
shoot up from one to three feet high, and sometimes as 
high as a cow's back. To-day, with the agriculturist 
cultivating much land, there are still more and better 
cattle than ever grazed on this range in the palmiest days 
of the old cattlemen. Sweetwater has become a railroad 
centre of considerable importance. From it the iron rails 
radiate to all points of the compass. The ranchman is 
still here, but cotton and other crops are becoming of 
greater importance each year. And yet a county govern- 
ment was not organized here until 1881. 

Leaving Sweetwater, the rainfall decreases, but there is 
an abundant supply of underground water, and windmills 
dot the landscape. Big Springs was so named because 
of the large springs located near the town. The railroads 



Following the Setting Sun 151 

and settlers have found this gushing water as valuable and 
refreshing as did the bufifalo and the cattle of an earlier 
day. The population becomes sparser. Winkler County- 
had a population at the last census of four hundred and 
forty-two, less than one inhabitant to each thousand acres 
of land. In the Pecos River Valley a number of irriga- 
tion projects are being worked, which water many 
thousands of acres of very fertile land. Pecos City is 
the most important town. The Texas & Pacific Railway 
intersects the Southern Pacific at Sierra Blanca, almost 
a hundred miles from El Paso. 

The gateway to Southwestern Texas, and the only large 
city in that section, is El Paso, which is situated not far 
from the borders of New Mexico. It is not only in the 
extreme southwest, but the extreme west of the State as 
well. It is a great relief to land in this modern city, 
with every convenience for comfort, after a long journey 
across the arid plains in midsummer. The oldest settle- 
ment within the present confines of Texas was at Isleta, 
or Ysleta, about twelve miles distant from El Paso. This 
village began as a settlement of the Tigua Indians, who 
had been driven from the village of the same name a few 
miles from Albuquerque, New Mexico, by the uprising 
of 1680. They were friendly to the Spaniards, and were 
colonized here by the Spanish governor. The new village 
was named after the older New Mexican pueblo. 

Although the oldest settlement in Texas, Isleta has 
had little share in the life of the State, for it was always, 
until quite recently, an Indian town. It is very probable 
that no Spaniards other than a padre or two dwelt there. 
It has, however, had a continuous existence since 1682, 
and some claim for several decades longer. The first 
effort of the priests was to found a mission after their 
custom. As a matter of fact, they established five villas 



152 Texas, the Marvellous 

on the north bank of the Rio Grande, each of which pos- 
sessed its church. A few of the Indians of Isleta are 
still left and dwell within the shadows of the old church, 
which is in a very good state of preservation. The out- 
side walls have been re-plastered, but the service is con- 
ducted by black-robed priests before the identical altar 
where the Spanish padre intoned his prayers centuries 
ago. The hand-beaten bells of bronze ring out as they 
did in the days of the seventeenth century, when the 
"Priest was Lord of the Land," summoning the faithful 
to worship as of yore. 

"I am an Indian," was the proud remark of one of 
the inhabitants of Isleta, when I questioned him about the 
Indians living there. Isleta is one of two places where 
any of the aboriginal race still dwell within the great State 
of Texas, which was once the home of tens of thousands 
of the wildest of the wild red men. Isleta was at one 
time the county seat. To-day it is a quaint old place 
worthy of a visit, and an electric line transports the visi- 
tor out in half an hour. 

There is a reason for El Paso. It is in a valley from 
one mile to three miles across and nearly forty miles in 
length. The banks of the river here are low and easily 
approachable, while at Eagle Pass and Laredo they are 
high. It is situated at the lowest pass across the con- 
tinental divide between the Isthmus of Tehuantepec and 
the Arctic Sea. It stands at the crossing of several of 
the oldest highways established by white men on this 
continent. An overland automobile route, which is open 
all the year round, also passes through this city of El 
Paso, which means The Pass. It has been of strategic 
and commercial importance ever since Coronado crossed 
the river at this point on his famous expedition into the 
Santa Fe country, about 1540. At the close of that cen- 



Following the Setting Sun 153 

tury the Spaniards formally asserted their claims over the 
country of the upper Rio Grande, and for a very brief 
time the seat of authority -wslS at Paso del Norte. 

To realize that El Paso is in a region of little rain, one 
has but to observe the desert character of the surround- 
ing country. But this fact, combined with an elevation of 
three-fourths of a mile, makes what her citizens proudly 
term "the most delightful all-the-year-round climate in 
the world." The altitude tempers the heat, which other- 
wise might make the summer temperature most uncom- 
fortable. The most disagreeable feature of the climate is 
the sandstorms which occasionally sweep down over the 
city. 

The normal territory of El Paso is enormous. It is the 
largest city and, in fact, the only large city from San 
Antonio west to Los Angeles, a distance of fifteen hun- 
dred miles. To the north there is no city until you reach 
Denver. It is one of the main gateways of Mexico, and 
it is the natural outlet for that Republic for several hun- 
dred miles south of the border. A number of transcon- 
tinental railroads pass through here on their way north 
or south. All of these facts have developed El Paso into 
a great natural concentrating and distributing point, and 
a very important railroad centre as well. It does not 
require the gift of prophecy to foretell that El Paso will 
be a much greater city at a not distant time in the future. 

The territory tributary to El Paso is a great plateau, 
which is, at its highest point, more than a mile above sea 
level. It is ridged by mountains into isolated peaks and 
ranges. Within this area almost every climatic zone of 
fauna may be found, from the palm and the desert cactus 
to the pine and the oak. Even though much of it has 
the appearance of desert, however, the soil is wonderfully 
rich and only needs water to bring out the life that lies 



154 Texas, the Marvellous 

dormant. The average precipitation is less than ten 
inches, which comes chiefly in summer showers. In the 
immediate neighbourhood of El Paso there are several 
thousand acres of the desert that have been devoted to 
the use of mankind by utilizing the waters of the Rio 
Grande. Here will be found pear and plum orchards 
on a large scale, while alfalfa will produce several crops 
in a season. These environs of cultivated land contrast 
forcibly in their vivid green with the grey alluvial hills 
and rocky mountain crests, and they impart a charm 
which is peculiar to the scenery of Northern Mexico and 
resembles somewhat that of Northern Africa. 

The Government is now spending ten million dollars on 
the Elephant Butte Dam, the largest irrigation reservoir 
in the world. It will store more than fifty per cent more 
water than the famous Assuan Dam on the Nile, and 
twice as much as the Roosevelt Dam in Arizona. It 
will form a lake forty-five miles long and one hundred 
and ninety-three feet deep, "enough (note that I quote) 
to fill a standpipe eleven feet in diameter reaching to the 
moon, or to cover the State of Massachusetts six inches 
deep." It will irrigate an area of three hundred square 
miles, and will store enough water to tide over three or 
four dry years. The canals will extend for a distance of 
thirty-five miles below El Paso. Under an agreement 
with Mexico it will be necessary to deliver sixty thousand 
acre feet of water into the Mexican canal above Juarez. 
In return the Mexican Government waives all right to 
water above here. This dam is on the Rio Grande River 
above El Paso and in New Mexico, but El Paso is really 
in the centre of the activities that will follow. 

"And rain," so the Western farmer says, "is only a 
poor substitute for irrigation." 

To appreciate El Paso one should first of all go across 



Following the Setting Sun 155 

the international bridge and become acquainted with 
Ciudad Juarez. This city was originally called El Paso 
del Norte, but the name was changed in honour of the fa- 
mous president of Mexico. Here is a place that had 
just as much reason for its existence, and had even a 
better start than the American city. Before the Mexican 
War no settlement of any size existed on what is now the 
American side of the Rio Grande, while Juarez was a 
city of thirteen thousand — a big population for that 
period. For a long time it was the border town separat- 
ing Mexico from the regions beyond. It represented the 
outpost of Spanish civilization, and was the point from 
which and through which the conquerors advanced the 
interests of the government of Spain and of themselves 
individually as well. From there they penetrated farther 
into what is now New Mexico in one direction and into 
Texas in the other. 

The Juarez of to-day is a city of low adobe structures, 
with dirty and unsanitary streets, and with few evidences 
of modern advancement. The most imposing buildings 
are the station and the railroad buildings. It would have 
remained an absolutely unpretentious mud village, if 
only those restless Americans would have permitted it. 
But no, those Yankees would come over, and they would 
instil a little life into it, and push their apathetic sister 
into some prominence. It is well worth the trip across 
the long wooden bridge which spans the Rio Grande and 
joins the State of Texas with the Republic of Mexico. 
Ciudad Juarez has changed hands so many times in the 
recent revolutions, and been attacked so frequently, that 
the little enterprise which formerly existed has been 
destroyed. 

The most prominent monument is the Plaza de Toros 
(bull-ring), and its most flourishing business is the race- 



156 Texas, the Marvellous 

track, where gambling of every sort is permitted. Of 
course it is not much credit to Americans that the pro- 
moters and managers of these races, as well as of the 
bull-fights, are generally our fellow countrymen. But 
such is the fact. One will find all along the Mexican 
border, at Tia Juana, Mexicala, Naco, Nogales, Nuevo 
Laredo, the same conditions existing as at Juarez. Men 
who have been driven out of the United States, as the 
laws against vice become enforced, drift across the border 
and locate in the contiguous towns in order to continue 
the fleecing of their fellow countrymen. Not much relief 
can be expected until there is a complete transformation 
in that unfortunate country across the international boun- 
dary. 

Those who are interested in antiquity will enjoy a visit 
to the old church of Guadalupe. Remote tradition claims 
the original founding of the mission as far back as 1549. 
It was doubtless by this route that the Spanish expedi- 
tions came which first settled at San Antonio and resulted 
in the continuation of the missions near that city. The 
bells of the Guadalupe mission were brought overland 
from Vera Cruz, a distance of more than one thousand 
miles. To-day the rude walls are covered with pictures 
of the saints, while the ceiling beams are composed of 
rudely carved logs that were brought from the mountain 
tops to the city. To-day the worshippers come and go 
as they have for many generations, kneeling and crouch- 
ing upon the floor in the dim light and before the chancel 
altar with its many tapers. 

One does not need to go far into the interior of Mexico 
to see the people living just as they did in the time of 
Christ. One of the main lines of the Mexican railway 
system runs from here to the City of Mexico. It passes 
through the important cities of Chihuahua, Zacatecas, 



Following the Setting Sun 157 

Torreon, Aguas Calientes, while branch lines carry the 
traveller to Guanajuato and Guadalajara. It is a most 
interesting trip for the traveller who has the time and 
the inclination. There are many sights which are as 
novel and foreign as can be found anywhere in Europe.^ 

Forty years ago much of what is now the principal 
business district of El Paso consisted only of a few 
adobe houses. A well-known writer of a little later 
(1885) says of it: "The town — whose inhabitants will 
doubtless be mortally offended because I did not call it a 
city — is about half a mile across, and situated in the cen- 
tre of a verdureless, mud-coloured plain, with a semicircle 
of gravelly hills on one side and the Rio Grande on an- 
other. Its buildings are mainly new, as houses of wood 
and brick are fast replacing the old adobe hovels." Now 
that same section is compactly covered with large mod- 
ern buildings equipped with every convenience. A few 
years ago El Paso cleaned out its gamblers. As is always 
the case when a reform is agitated, many said that gam- 
bling was absolutely necessary to the city's prosperous 
existence, situated as it was out amidst the desert lands. 
The better citizens said "No," and proceeded to abolish 
it. Business at once forged ahead, bank deposits grew, 
and buildings increased. The character of the population 
likewise improved. 

It is indeed a gratification to the traveller to alight in 
such a city as El Paso, after a long and dusty ride over 
the arid plains extending in every direction. A hotel 
and business block now occupies the site of the old ranch 
house of Juan Marie Ponce de Leon, built in 1827, the 
premier house on the east bank of the Rio Grande oppo- 
site the ancient city of Paso del Norte, now Ciudad 

' See Mexico and Her People of To-day by the same author, published by 
The Page Company, Boston. 



158 Texas, the Marvellous 

Juarez. Busy retail stores and crowded office buildings 
have now taken the place of his establishment. Ponce de 
Leon at that time was one of the wealthiest, most enter- 
prising, and most influential gentlemen of this neighbour- 
hood. He was a man of means, and he had a monopoly 
of transportation with his wagon trains. Outside of an 
occasional raid of Indians, there was little to mar the quiet 
of the settlement so far removed from the stirring scenes 
of the Texas Revolution. Ponce de Leon fought with his 
country in the Mexican War, but was defeated, and the 
United States troops took possession of the country. 

It is really from its occupation by the Americans in 
December, 1846, that the history of El Paso as an Ameri- 
can city begins. A large military post, called Fort Bliss, 
was established, and possession ever after maintained. 
During the Civil War, El Paso was alternately occupied 
by Confederate and Federal troops. After the war it was 
an isolated border town for a decade and a half, until 
the transcontinental railroads reached it. The first rail- 
road train entered it on May 25, 1881. 

The city is now stretching out towards Fort Bliss, 
and up the slopes of the overhanging mountain. The 
strata of this mountain lie at an angle of forty-five de- 
grees or more, showing that there has been a tremendous 
upheaval of nature at some time in the past. It is a city 
of substantial homes, for only a very small percentage of 
the houses are frame. The bungalow type of dwelling 
is very popular among the cheaper homes. The influ- 
ence of the Spanish style of architecture is also frequently 
seen. The streets are generally wide, thus giving abund- 
ant opportunity for a park between sidewalk and curb. 
The homes are supplied with as many flowers and vines 
and shrubs and trees as in cities where there is greater 
rainfall. The effects and beauties achieved in the parks 



Following the Setting Sun 159 

belie the idea that it is absolute desert around El Paso, for 
water is the only element lacking, and there is water in 
abundance to take the place of rainfall. There is an 
amplitude of sunshine, for El Paso claims to have three 
hundred and twenty-nine sunshiny days in a year. 

El Paso has experienced much excitement in recent 
years, owing to the revolutionary troubles in Mexico. 
Fort Bliss is the permanent barrack, and is one of our 
largest military posts. It is delightfully located from 
a health standpoint, about five miles from the centre of 
the town. For several years during the border excitement 
several thousand extra troops have been stationed in and 
around the city and acting as a border patrol. The khaki 
is indeed a familiar spectacle on the streets of El Paso, 
and the police guard of the camp may be observed almost 
any evening rounding up those who forget to return to 
camp at the prescribed time to retire. Thousands of 
Mexican refugees have likewise been living there. The 
poorer ones have helped to congest the Mexican quarter, 
already full, while the wealthier ones have added to the 
revenue of the large hotels. 



CHAPTER X 



THE GULF COAST 



Those were indeed stirring times when the early ex- 
plorers on this continent were treading ^the pathless wil- 
derness and sailing over uncharted waters. It required no 
lurid melodrama to provide any needed thrills, for the 
dangers of the way and the treachery of the red men 
supplied an abundance of excitement. One of the most 
fascinating incidents in connection with the Gulf Coast 
of Texas is that involving its discovery by the Chevalier 
de La Salle. This intrepid explorer found his way down 
the Mississippi and into the great inland sea known as 
the Gulf of Mexico. One by one the Great Lakes had 
been discovered. Joliet and Marquette reached the Mis- 
sissippi, and followed that stream as far as the Arkansas 
in 1673. But apprehension caused them to return. In 
1 68 1, La Salle, with a body of fifty followers, started 
on the same journey and sailed the Mississippi to its 
mouth in the following year. Unaware that the Span- 
iards had already been there, he named the country 
Louisiana in honour of his king, and claimed the terri- 
tory for France. 

"Henceforth," proclaimed La Salle, "my God and my 
king are supreme, forever, over the innumerable souls 
and immeasurable lands of this great Continent." Shortly 
afterward he returned to France to report his discoveries. 
Louis XIV was at this time at the very zenith of his 
glory. The prospect of a new empire appealed to his 
160 



The Gulf Coast 161 

vanity, as well as to his judgment. La Salle was no doubt 
fully as enthusiastic as the project warranted in his inter- 
views with the monarch. At any rate, when La Salle 
retraced his steps for the New World, in 1684, he was 
accompanied by four ships, with a captain of the royal 
navy in command of one. 

La Salle intended to establish a military post at the 
mouth of the Great River, in order to protect the French 
settlements to be established farther up. His good for- , 
tune had ended, however, as succeeding events proved. 
One ship was captured by buccaneers in the West Indies. 
But the severest trial of all was that he missed his des- 
tination, and finally succeeded, in February, 1685, in 
effecting a landing at Matagorda Bay, on the coast of 
Texas, hundreds of miles southwest of the river sought. 
La Salle firmly believed this bay to be one of the mouths 
of the Mississippi, and so established a temporary camp 
on the shore. In entering the bay another vessel was 
wrecked, and shortly after landing the naval officer sailed 
for France with a third, because he could not work in 
harmony with his rather irritable chief. Thus only one 
rather small vessel, the Bella, remained at the service of 
the new colony. Even this vessel was finally lost, so that 
the colony was without the means of leaving the country 
by water. 

After landing, a little search soon revealed the fact that 
the bay which they had entered had no connection with 
the Father of Waters. This was indeed a tremendous 
disappointment to La Salle, but he was not yet down- 
hearted. In order to find a suitable site for a camp until 
the Mississippi could be located, a voyage was made up 
a river emptying into the bay. The river was named 
La Vache, or the "river of beeves," which the Spaniards 
later translated into Lavaca, the name which the river 



162 Texas, the Marvellous 

still bears. It was so named because of the great number 
of buffaloes. The fort which he built was named Saint 
Louis, in honour of the sovereign who financed his expe- 
dition. La Salle gave the same name to the bay, but the 
Spaniards named it Espiritu Santo, and sometimes called 
it San Bernardo. 

Bad luck continued to follow the La Salle expedition, 
even after Fort St. Louis was established. Two of the 
members deserted almost immediately, one was hung for 
a crime, and one of his best men died as the result of a 
sriake bite. Before the first summer had passed, thirty 
had succumbed to disease. Treacherous Indians on all 
sides threatened the security of those remaining. Let the 
imagination of the reader fill out this scene on the shores 
of Matagorda Bay. An unhealthy shore, provisions 
scarce, fear of the natives, no way of returning home, 
exact location unknown — ^these were only a few of the 
troubles. It was enough to daunt the staunch heart of 
the most fearless explorer. Some of his men became 
mutinous and clamorous. A weaker man would have 
yielded to despair. It was not so with La Salle. In 
October, 1683, La Salle set out to find the Mississippi, 
but returned a few months later unsuccessful. In 1686, 
he began a second attempt, but only reached the Trinity 
River. Here he was attacked by a fever, which delayed 
him two months, and again he found it necessary to return 
to Fort St. Louis. He started on a third overland jour- 
ney in January, 1687, in an attempt to reach the French 
settlements in Canada for succour. He had not proceeded 
far when he was assassinated by some of his own men. 
A couple of shots rang out from the tall grass of the 
prairie, and La Salle dropped dead with a bullet in his 
brain. 

Thus ended the career of one of the most intrepid ex- 



^he Gulf Coast 163 

plorers of the days of great discoveries in the New World, 
at the early age of forty-three. His only reward for 
adding an empire to the realm of his sovereign master 
was the bullet of an assassin. He was a lonely and un- 
communicative man, who made no confidants. His tem- 
perament was gloomy and unsocial, and this, combined 
with a fierce temper, undoubtedly angered some of his 
followers, many of whom were of the scum of Paris, and 
led to the death of the only man who might have brought 
succour. But he was a knight of spotless purity, of daunt- 
less courage and of unbounded self-reliance, so we are 
told. His loyalty to his sovereign was of the nature 
of a religious sentiment, while his devotion to his church 
would have stood the test of martyrdom. The exact 
place where this tragedy took place is unknown, and 
several sites are claimed, but a recent authority says it 
was near the present site of Navasota. 

Fort St. Louis survived a couple of years longer. The 
colony on the Gulf was left to its fate by the "Grande 
Monarque," Louis XIV. In his gorgeous palace at Ver- 
sailles he turned a deaf ear to the account that reached 
him concerning the unfortunates at Fort St. Louis. Sev- 
eral expeditions were sent both by sea and by land by the 
Spaniards, to locate and destroy the French settlement, 
all of which were unsuccessful. One day a Spanish ship, 
said to have been guided by deserters from La Salle, 
sought out the spot where the colony had been, intent on 
its destruction. But the destroyers found the place silent 
as the tomb. The weather-beaten palisade was dilapi- 
dated, and the roof of the storehouse had tumbled in. 
The dismounted cannon lay scattered around in the mire. 
The whole place had fallen into decay. Looking a little 
farther the Spaniards came upon a cluster of human skele- 
tons, lying as if they had fallen there in death. 



164 Texas, the Marvellous 

Awed by the mystery of the place, the strangers were 
about to leave when two men, looking like Indians, came 
up. They said that many of the colony had died from 
small-pox, and the rest had been murdered by the In- 
dians. They were the sole survivors of the colony. They 
were made prisoners of war and sentenced to life im- 
prisonment. Thus disappeared the colony established by 
the intrepid La Salle in Texas. Thus ended the first at- 
tempt to establish a settlement of Europeans on the soil 
of Texas. But it was the French attempt that did finally 
lead to the Spanish settlement and development. 

Although the Spaniards took possession of this Gulf 
Coast, the title of Spain was in dispute for more than a 
century. France at all times laid claim to it by reason 
of the discovery and settlement by La Salle. With the 
Louisiana Purchase this claim was passed on to the 
United States in 1803. It was not until the general set- 
tlement made with Spain by Uncle Sam in 18 19, which 
was a part of the general bargain by which Florida was 
acquired, that the right of Spain to this part of the Gulf 
Coast was recognized. This was only two years before 
the title was again lost as a result of the successful revo- 
lution of Mexico. 

It is doubtless true, however, that the Spaniards first 
set foot on Texas soil. In the year 1532, three white men 
and a negro arrived in Mexico. They related one of the 
strangest and almost unbelievable stories of shipwreck, 
suffering, captivity, and ultimate escape ever spoken by 
mortal lips. Cabeza de Vaca was the leader of this party, 
all of whom were survivors of an expedition led by 
Narvaez, which had been sent out by Spain to subdue 
Florida, the name then applied to the entire coast. They 
had been shipwrecked somewhere along the Texas coast, 
and had been held in slavery for several years by the 



The Gulf Coast 165 

Indians. From all the accounts that we have these men 
were the first to tread the soil of Texas. 

Matagorda Bay and its adjacent waters which indent 
the coast have been the scene of many later historical 
incidents. These include Lavaca Bay and River, Espiritu 
Santo Bay, and the San Antonio and Colorado rivers. 
The shores have been the seat of many ambitious towns 
and seaports, but the locations of some of them can be 
found with difficulty. Prince Solius Braunfels selected 
a site here, which he called Carl's Haven, as the landing- 
place for his immigrants. Large numbers of these un- 
fortunate Germans succumbed to a pestilence while await- 
ing transportation to the interior. Indianola was once 
an important town and the second seaport in Texas, but 
it is now a "lost town." Other towns at one time prom- 
ising were Cox's Point and Dimitt's Landing. A great 
storm in 1875 destroyed the old port, and a majority of 
the inhabitants were drowned. At the present time hardly 
a building indicates the site of this once flourishing sea- 
port. Matagorda was formerly the leading town here, 
but Port Lavaca is much larger to-day. The bottom 
lands at the mouth of the Colorado are among the richest 
in the State, but the lack of drainage long prevented 
development. The level land and abundance of water, 
however, were just the necessary conditions for rice cul- 
tivation, and this has been developed on a large scale. 

There are many other places of historical and general 
interest on the Gulf Coast. It is claimed that the site 
of Corpus Christi (Body of Christ) was discovered by 
La Salle, and was named Corpus Christi Bay because it 
was discovered on the day of that celebration of the Ro- 
man Catholic Church. The news that Texas had accepted 
the proffered terms of annexation, which was to be the 
signal for General Taylor to land his troops on the fron- 



166 Texas, the Marvellous 

tier of Texas, reached New Orleans on July 21st, 1845. 
On the following day the "Army of Occupation" em- 
barked for Texas, with explicit instructions to limit its 
activities "to the defence of the territory of Texas," now 
"an integral portion of our country." Ten days later, 
General Taylor took up his quarters on the site of the 
present city of Corpus Christi, at the mouth of the Nueces 
River. 

For seven months Taylor remained here, wholly in- 
active, awaiting the fulfilment of Mexico's threat that 
news of the annexation of Texas would be deemed cause 
"sufficient for the immediate proclamation of war." 
About the n;iiddle of March, 1846, this army began its 
weary march across one hundred and fifty miles of plains, 
which separated it from the mouth of the Rio Grande. 
It is said that there was not a white inhabitant to be found. 
To the soldiers, unused to treeless plains, the country had 
the appearance of a desert. Cattle and horses which had 
become wild roamed over the plains in almost countless 
numbers. It was not until after the Mexican War that 
the re-population of the country began. 

Up to the time that General Taylor landed at Corpus 
Christi, there was only a very small settlement at this 
point. There was a little town on the hill which was 
called Bluff City, but the town of Corpus Christi is di- 
rectly on the shores of the expansive bay, which is land- 
locked and twenty-five miles across. The bluff here is 
the highest land on the Gulf Coast lying within the State 
of Texas, so that the settlement was appropriately named. 
After the Mexican War Corpus Christi became the chief 
port between Galveston and the Rio Grande. In 1862 
the little city was captured by Lieutenant Kittridge in 
command of a couple of small boats. He captured sev- 
eral Confederate boats and necessitated the destruction 



The Gulf Coast 167 

of others. Like all Texans, the inhabitants of this city 
are very hopeful, and they look forward with great con- 
fidence to the future of their city. It is to-day the most 
important as well as the most attractive city on this coast 
south of Galveston. The hopes of the citizens are not 
altogether without reason, for the Bay of Corpus Christi 
is both broad and beautiful. It affords a magnificent set- 
ting. The city has a sweeping bay front of four miles. 
The one drawback, a deep harbour, is even now being 
remedied, and Corpus Christi will doubtless take its place 
some day as one of the great ports of the Gulf, when 
the contemplated improvements are completed. 

Corpus Christi has had a splendid and substantial 
growth for a number of years. The city, which used to 
be a sleepy and dreamy sort of place, is growing rapidly 
and is improving in every way. And yet it has not 
entirely lost the air of Old Spain and the Spanish 
grandees. A great causeway has been built across a 
bayou, which afifords better access to the mainland, so 
that the city will not be isolated so much as in the past. 
It has become a very popular resort both winter and 
summer, rivalling in a measure its greater rival, Galves- 
ton. Large and comfortable hotels are ready to welcome 
the traveller. The bathing is said to be absolutely without 
undertow, and can be indulged in almost the entire year. 

Tarpon fishing is one of the sports that many fishermen 
indulge in at Corpus Christi, and it is exciting enough 
for any of them. To read the literature put out by the 
city, one would even think it was a sort of Elysium. Four 
railroads already tap the city, one of them being a direct 
branch of the Mexican railways. This railroad was first 
a narrow gauge and was called the Corpus Christi, San 
Diego and Rio Grande ; it connects that city with Laredo. 
It was built in 1879, and did much to bring about settled 



168 Texas, the Marvellous 

conditions throughout the territory traversed by it. It 
also helped to develop and bring prosperity to Corpus 
Christi. 

Just a short distance north of Corpus Christi is an- 
other harbour, or bay, known as Aransas Pass, which has 
been navigated from the very beginning of Texas colo- 
nization. Here was also the historic Copano Landing, 
which was of great importance for the landing of supplies 
during the Texas Revolution. After the war Rockport 
and Fulton arose, and both became important shipping 
ports as well as commercial centres. Cattle were driven 
here from the back country for shipment or for slaughter. 
In recent years the Government has expended consider- 
able money in deepening harbours and the construction of 
jetties so that vessels of deeper draught can enter the bay. 

The territory all about here, now represented by Re- 
fugio, Aransas and San Patricio Counties, was included 
in the concession granted for Irish colonists to Hewitson 
and Power, or McMullen and McGloin. The capital of 
the former was at Mission del Refugio, and the latter at 
San Patricio. The mission at Refugio was destroyed not 
so very many years later, and only a little settlement re- 
mained at the time of the Revolution. Near San Patricio 
there was a Mexican fort, called Fort Lipantitlan, which 
was captured early in the Revolution. These Irish settlers 
came in from 1829 to 1833. San Patricio is one of the 
original counties of Texas. The boundaries have been 
changed several times, and the thriving town of Sinton 
has succeeded San Patricio as the county seat. The Irish 
are now only a very small proportion of the population. 

Artesian water assured life and prosperity to a large 
section of the Gulf Coast. A great drought of 1901 
brought it about. The death of thousands of cattle had 
made the ranchers desperate. A geologist had reported 



The Gulf Coast 169 

that a sheet of water underlay the whole coast country, 
and it was determined to find it or prove the report false. 
When a stream of limpid and clear water spouted out 
of the hole, and spread over the browned and parched 
prairie, there was great rejoicing. The discovery added 
another empire to Texas. It brought about the railroad 
extension to Brownsville. Towns arose along the route 
like mushrooms. 

Until the artesian belt was discovered this land be- 
tween the Nueces and the Rio Grande was considered 
worthless, except to the big ranchers. It is said that 
there were only a half-dozen houses in which white peo- 
ple lived in the last one hundred and fifty miles toward 
Brownsville. Now it is becoming a populous region 
of farmers as well as ranchmen. Other wells were put 
down. The flow of clear and sparkling water continued 
to come to the surface. The wells are generally from five 
hundred to twelve hundred feet in depth. The water 
comes up from this great underground river quite warm, 
and must be cooled to make it palatable to drink. No 
man can put down more than one well on his farm, and 
the well must be properly made. In this way the future 
water supply is husbanded. 

One of the most interesting features of the development 
of the Gulf Coast is the inner waterway. The entire coast 
is lined with a series of lagoons, as a glance at a good 
map will show. The Laguna del Madre extends from 
within a mile of the Rio Grande to Corpus Christi Bay, a 
distance of a hundred miles, with a natural depth of three 
feet of water. From there there is little solid digging to 
Matagorda Bay. The route to Galveston involves sev- 
eral miles of solid excavation. But the bottom of the la- 
goons is generally soft mud, which is easily deepened by 
means of dredges. It is planned to connect these lagoons 



170 Texas, the Marvellous 

with a series of canals, and to deepen the lagoons where 
necessary, so that there will be a storm- free route for ves- 
sels to sail from Sabine Pass to the mouth of the Rio 
Grande. Already this work has been completed as far 
as Galveston. It will doubtless be excavated as far as 
Corpus Christi before many years. The idea of such a 
waterway is not a new one, for the Congress of the Texas 
Republic had considered such a project, but the lack of 
money prevented its realization. Mexico has taken up 
this same work in the neighbourhood of Tampico, and has 
done scores of miles of dredging. That government 
had planned to extend it to the American border and unite 
it with the American end. But the revolution of 1910 
put a quietus to this project so far as Mexico is con- 
cerned, just as it did with many other meritorious propo- 
sitions. 

In the early part of the last century the Gulf Coast of 
Texas became very troublesome for shipping. Especially 
were there many buccaneers and fillibusters who preyed 
on the commerce of Spain. With its long, low and bare 
islands, it was almost an ideal place for pirates. For the 
motley crowd engaged in this occupation, which were 
gathered from all nations, Galveston Island became the 
special rendezvous. It was not only a good harbour, but 
it was within easy striking distances of the Spanish fort- 
resses. The first known occupation of the island was in 
1 81 6, by some of the struggling republicans of Mexico 
during the revolution. At that time Commodore Louis 
De Aury set up an organized government there in oppo- 
sition to the Spanish authority. To him came Xavier 
Mina with a couple of hundred men and several ships. 
The principal occupation of these leaders was plundering 
the Spanish commerce, and incidentally that of slave- 
trading. The aim was to capture slaves and then smug- 



The Gulf Coast 171 

gle the blacks into Louisiana, as the customary price of 
a slave was a dollar a pound. Several hundred men were 
soon attracted to this island, among whom, it is said, 
were many citizens of the United States. 

While the forces of Aury and his associates were en- 
gaged in an expedition against Mexico, Jean Lafitte 
quietly took possession of Galveston Island. It was 
simply one pirate stepping into the shoes of another. La- 
fitte has been called the Pirate of the Gulf. In a duel in 
Charleston, South Carolina, about an affair of the heart, 
he killed his antagonist, after which he adopted the life 
of a buccaneer. For his services in the War of 1812, 
Lafitte was granted an unconditional pardon. But after 
peace with England was declared, he returned to his old 
calling. Thus it is that we find him at Galveston. For 
a time previous to this, Lafitte had been engaged in op- 
erating near the mouth of the Mississippi until it became 
too warm for sea rovers there. His establishment in 
Barratavia had been broken up in 18 14. Once established 
on this island, Lafitte erected buildings, built a fort, and 
organized a complete government with heads of several 
departments. 

Lafitte claimed that it was only Spanish vessels which 
he attacked, and justified this course by saying that he 
had once suffered from the Spaniards, so that he had 
declared eternal war on Spain. It is said, however, that 
his men showed a remarkable degree of impartiality in 
their unlawful enterprise. It was indeed their willing- 
ness to make captives of United States vessels that has- 
tened their downfall. The fortification built by Lafitte 
on the site of the present city of Galveston, and the flour- 
ishing town established by him, was named Campeachy. 
His own house was the most conspicuous building, and 
it was painted red — an appropriate colour. By his men 



172 Texas, the Marvellous 

he was known as Lord of Galveston, and he exercised 
almost absolute authority. 

In 1 82 1, after the attention of the authorities at Wash- 
ington had been attracted to the work of Lafitte, an expe- 
dition was sent to the island with orders to break up this 
nest of pirates. Lafitte received the commanding officer 
and entertained him with princely hospitality. When he 
found that the Lieutenant's orders were imperative, he 
took his favourite ship, the Pride, a foretopsail schooner 
that mounted fourteen guns, and sailed out of the harbour 
with a hundred picked men. He never returned to the 
Texas coast, but died a few years later in Yucatan. The 
rule of pirates on the island of Galveston was then at an 
end. 

If there always seems to be something romantic about 
an island, Galveston has her full share of romance. It 
was named "Galveston" after Count Bernardo de Galvez, 
who was Spanish viceroy to Mexico when this island was 
a part of that country.* The Mexican Government estab- 
lished a miltary post and custom-house here in 1830, and 
the "Port of Galveston" came into official existence. It 
still remains, and includes a much greater territory than 
the island itself. The City of Galveston secured its first 
charter from General Sam Houston, when that famous 
warrior was President of tlie Republic of Texas. 

Like Houston, Galveston was promoted by a private 
company. But its very situation destined it for a great 
port. Here is the largest and safest harbour along the 

* Galvez was one of the most enlightened and liberal rulers that ever oc- 
cupied the vice-regal throne in Spanish-America. He introduced many 
reforms. He had been a friend of the American revolutionists. The 
Mexicans, many of them at least, wanted to throw o£f the Spanish yoke and 
make Galvez king. He declined to consider the subject. He died suddenly 
in 1794, as a result, so his friends believed, of poison administered by ene- 
mies. 



The Gulf Coast 173 

coast of Texas, and near it are some of the richest and 
most populous counties. Before the time of railroads, 
water provided the only outlet, and Galveston had as- 
sumed great importance even before the virar of the rebel- 
lion. For four years during that conflict, however, busi- 
ness v^ras at a standstill. The only boats in the harbour 
were the gunboats of the opposing forces. In 1862 a 
force of federal marines landed and remained several 
months. It was then recaptured by the Confederates. 
Nevertheless a close blockade was maintained by the Fed- 
eral fleet until the close of the war, and it was finally 
occupied by the troops of the Union again in 1865. 
Hence it is that one is treading on historic ground when 
walking about the city of Galveston. 

Galveston is probably better known to-day because 
of her calamity than any other single incident in her 
history. It frequently requires misfortune to bring out 
the best that there is in man, and so it seems to be with 
a municipality. Galveston was a growing and prosperous 
town prior to the great disaster which befell it on the 8th 
of September, 1900, when approximately five thousand 
lives were lost and a third of the property destroyed. 
Within a few short years it has arisen above this disaster, 
and the Galveston of to-day is a far greater city than it 
ever was before. There is no finer example of real spirit 
and pluck existent in America to-day than Galveston. 
History might perhaps overlook the storm of 1900, if it 
were not for the fact that out of that calamity arose new 
forces, whose influence is significant not only in this city 
but throughout the entire United States. 

The night of terror in the opening year of the twentieth 
century, during which great damage was wrought to 
Galveston, was enough to crush the spirit of the strongest 
man. Wind and wave together devastated almost the 



174 Texas, the Marvellous 

entire area on the eastern and southern sides of the city. 
Frame buildings were swept from their unsubstantial 
foundations ; they were tossed about like small boats upon 
a reef. Thousands left their homes and waded the swift 
current in the streets to find security in the schools and 
other solid buildings. But many failed to realize the 
danger until it was too late. They remained in their 
frail houses, and in the final wreck were either drowned 
or crushed among the falling timbers. 

The tidal wave occurred on Saturday, and, when Sun- 
day morning opened, the flood had withdrawn almost as 
quickly as it came; but the city was a ruin. Fully half 
of the improvement values had been destroyed. Even to 
one whose immediate family did not suffer, the scenes 
of wreck and death were enough to unnerve him. This, 
and the fear of another similar occurrence, caused thou- 
sands to leave Galveston and seek new homes elsewhere, 
and only a very small percentage ever returned to the 
city. But those who remained were stout-hearted. The 
great majority had no thought other than to restore their 
homes and institutions. Sparta is now nothing but a mem- 
ory, but Spartan courage has not been forgotten. Gal- 
veston is still with us, and its courage in the face of dis- 
aster is still a living remembrance. 

I brought all the forces of imagination to play in an 
effort to picture in my mind the Galveston following the 
great tidal wave. One gentleman, who had lived there 
at that time, drove me over the city in an automobile, 
pointing out to me on the way the line where the destruc- 
tion of houses ended. He gave me a vivid picture of the 
scene that he had witnessed, in which his own family had 
suffered greatly. But words alone could not depicture 
the terrible fury of the winds, the terrific lashings of 
the waves, the ominous crackling of the heavy timbers 



The Gulf Coast 175 



as they yielded to the destructive forces of wave and 
wind. 

The majority of the inhabitants of Galveston met the 
situation brought on by the disaster bravely. Public 
meetings were held and committees were appointed ; plans 
were immediately initiated to rebuild the city, and to 
provide reasonable assurance that a similar disaster might 
never occur. All petty differences among the various 
factions in the city, which existed there just as they do 
everywhere, were forgotten, and the entire populace 
seemed to work as a unit in the upbuilding of their 
stricken city. An unofficial body of fifteen business men, 
without real political authority, known as the Deep Water 
Commission, assumed the direction of affairs until the 
reorganization of the city government was effected. This 
committee was in almost continuous service for many 
weeks following the storm. It was to this spirit of co- 
operation, and the common desire for uplift, that was due 
the birth of the commission form of government which 
has spread so rapidly over the country. 

There had been so much politics in the previous ad- 
ministration of Galveston that every one was anxious to 
eliminate this problem for the future. Business men and 
professional men alike dedicated their best thought and 
endeavour toward solving this question which has trou- 
bled all our American municipalities. Hence the commis- 
sion plan was adopted to eradicate the evils of partisan- 
ship in municipal affairs, and the success was so great that 
the "Galveston Plan," as it is everywhere called, has been 
adopted in several hundred municipalities throughout the 
United States. By this system the mayor and four com- 
missioners conduct business in the same way as do the 
heads of a great business enterprise. Notwithstanding the 
heavy municipal debt inherited from previous admin- 



176 Texas, the Marvellous 

istrations, and the necessity of unusually heavy expendi- 
tures immediately, this body of business men accom- 
plished wonders. 

Galveston is situated on the east end of Galveston 
Island, vifhich is on one side of Galveston Bay and in 
Galveston County. The island is thirty-six miles long, 
and from two to two and a half miles wide. The total 
area is about thirteen square miles. It is an island of 
sand, and before the disaster was only a few feet above 
the level of the sea at its highest point. The tidal wave, 
impelled by tempestuous winds, poured its waters over 
the island, while wind and water together spread destruc- 
tion everywhere. It was decided to raise the level of the 
city an average of about seven feet. The total area to 
be thus elevated was about three square miles. It does 
not necessitate much calculation to realize that the amount 
of sand required to cover a surface of three square miles 
to a depth of seven feet, is almost incalculable. It runs 
into the millions of cubic yards. A canal two hundred 
feet wide and a mile and a half long was cut into the cen- 
tre of the city to facilitate the filling process. The work 
was done by sections. In each section the owners of the 
houses were obliged to raise tlieir homes on stilts to the 
required height, and the city then filled in the lot at public 
expense. 

At the completion of this work of filling, the average 
level of the island on the side facing the sea was seven- 
teen feet above sea level. To protect this filling a con- 
crete wall was built, which follows the contour of the 
island for a distance of five and a half miles. This wall 
is sixteen feet wide at the base, seventeen feet high, and 
five feet wide at the top, with a concave outward face to 
break and turn back the force of the waves. The entire 
structure rests on a foundation of piles driven forty feet 



The Gulf Coast 177 

in the sand. Adjoining the wall is a splendid boulevard, 
with cement sidewalk and brick roadway throughout its 
entire length, and with concrete benches at regular inter- 
vals where people may sit and enjoy the seaward outlook. 

The two mile stretch between the island and mainland 
has always constituted a serious obstacle to commerce. 
The first bridge was destroyed by a storm in 1867. Be- 
fore the disaster there were several bridges for railroads 
and one for wagons, but all were destroyed. The one 
damaged the least was repaired, and for ten years con- 
stituted the only connecting link with the mainland. Tq 
connect the island with the mainland, a concrete roadway 
was constructed through the combined efforts of railroads 
and city. It is two and a half miles in length and one 
hundred and fifty-four feet in width, excepting the lift- 
bridge section, which is narrower, and is considered a 
triumph of concrete construction. Over this roadway all 
the railroads, including one interurban line, cross into the 
city. Before the flood the tracks were all on piles and were 
completely destroyed. The amount of traffic that passes 
over this causeway is enormous, for Galveston is the 
second largest seaport on the Gulf of Mexico. It is prob- 
ably the greatest cotton-shipping port in the world. 

The first great test of the new and reinforced Galves- 
ton came in August, 191 5, just a few days less than fif- 
teen years after the one above mentioned. It is said that 
the wind reached an even greater velocity than on the 
former occasion, but the newer city has been built more 
substantially and resisted the storm king nobly. A few 
buildings were wrecked, but the great concrete wall with- 
stood all the attacks and counter-attacks of wind and 
wave. The only serious damage was in the wrecking of 
a small portion of the causeway, so that communications 
were interrupted for a time. The loss of life in Gal- 



178 Texas, the Marvellous 

veston was no greater than in a number of coast cities 
on the mainland. The wisdom of those who planned the 
protecting wall has been fully demonstrated. 

Galveston's exports are said to be exceeded in value 
only by New York. From the North, the Northwest and 
the West, a ceaseless tide of products come to this great 
seaport for shipment to the markets of the world. Great 
ocean liners are present at the wharves at all times ready 
to sail to all parts of the world. The flag of every carry- 
ing nation on the globe may be seen here at the docks, and 
sailors of every nationality walk the streets of Galveston. 
After a long fight the efforts of the citizens in inducing 
Congress to dredge the two bars which prevented the gi- 
gantic ocean liners from reaching the wharves were 
crowned with success. The Federal Government has 
expended eleven million dollars in this work. 

The main streets of the city are rather unimpressive and 
old-fashioned, but a walk down along the wharf, where 
as many as forty ocean ships have lain at a single time, 
discharging and receiving cargoes, is an interesting ex- 
perience. The smell of tarred rope, which always seems 
present in an ocean port, can readily be distinguished here. 
There are no real skyscrapers, as the foundation is prob- 
ably deemed a little too uncertain for so lofty a structure. 
One of the most interesting buildings is the picturesque 
old City Hall. Here the "Galveston Plan" had its birth, 
and here it had its first trial. As a city hall it will soon 
be replaced, however, by a splendid new building which 
is now under construction. 

Much of Galveston now blooms with the rose, and espe- 
cially with the oleander, which here grows to a gigantic 
size. It has been called the "City of Oleanders." To 
grow anything it was necessary to bring in soil from the 
mainland and mix with the sand that had been superim- 




OLD CITY HALL, GAL\'ESTON 



The Gulf Coast 179 

posed. The streets are lined with palms, and many yards 
are brightened with these same graceful plants. They 
give a charming aspect to the place which attracts many 
winter visitors. Galveston is generally a city of balmy 
breezes, and it is possible to bathe in the surf even in 
midwinter. It is the most popular bathing resort in the 
State of Texas. It has been looked upon as a resort both 
winter and summer, and much enterprise has been mani- 
fested to improve the attractions and facilities of the city 
for this purpose. The Gulf breezes usually temper the 
summer heat, and the winters have only occasional chilly 
spells of short duration. A magnificent hotel was built 
by public subscription to take care of the resort seekers, 
which is only another instance of the public spirit to be 
found here in Galveston. 

Everywhere in Galveston one encounters reminders of 
one of her famous citizens. Few cities of the size have 
so many examples of private munificence. In 1843 ^ poor 
Swiss immigrant came to that city and began to peddle 
notions on the streets. A little later he embarked in the 
mercantile business, in which he seemed to be successful 
from the very start. He realized, however, the obligation 
that a successful business man owes to his community, 
and began his benefactions before life had closed in for 
him. We find there a handsome public school as one of 
his benefactions. He also built the Young Men's Chris- 
tian Association, with gymnasium, baths, reading-rooms 
and dormitories ; the Grace Episcopal Church, a fine stone 
structure, is one of his monuments. A Home for Old 
Women, where aged and homeless old ladies may live, and 
an Orphans' Home were also erected with money left 
by him. He established a Public Library, with an endow- 
ment of four hundred thousand dollars, which is one of 
the finest libraries for a town of its size that I have ever 



180 Texas, the Marvellous 

seen. On the most prominent street in the city stands a 
notable monument to the heroes of Texan independence, 
which, we are informed by an inscription, was built by 
Henry Rosenberg. It is no wonder that the memory of 
Henry Rosenberg is ever green in the hearts of his fellow 
townsmen. 

A little way up the Bay of Galveston one will find the 
old port of Anahuac. Under the Mexican rule the col- 
lector of the "port of Galveston" resided near the mouth 
of the Trinity. A fort was built there in 183 1 and was 
given the name of Anahuac, the ancient title of the City 
of Mexico. This fort, constructed of brick, was on the 
bay shore, and the outline could be traced until recently. 
It played a conspicuous part in the early history of Texas, 
and the name is almost as familiar as Goliad and Nacog- 
doches. Just a short distance away is Turtle Bayou, 
where the famous "Turtle Bayou Resolutions" were pro- 
mulgated. In 1836 as many as thirty houses in addition 
to barracks for the soldiers were seen there by a traveller. 
It is now the county seat of Chambers County, and has 
again become of some importance. The greater city of 
Galveston, however, overshadows Anahuac, and few 
travellers ever take the time to visit this historic old 
landmark. 



CHAPTER XI 



ALONG THE RIO GRANDE 



Some inspired poet ought to arise and compose The 
Watch on the Rio Grande. Such a song would have its 
genesis in fact, and it would not require a very vivid im- 
agination to supply the necessary romance. The Watch 
on the Rio Grande would be more appropriate to-day than 
The Watch on the Rhine, for, with the French boundaries 
forcibly removed from that historic river, as they were 
in 1871, the immediate occasion for that inspiring hymn 
disappeared. Along the Rio Grande there has been more 
or less necessity for a guard ever since Texas affiliated 
with the United States. It existed during the time of 
the Republic of Texas. 

During the whole of the troublous years following the 
downfall of Porfirio Diaz, beginning in 1910, thousands 
of the boys in khaki have paced their beats along this 
lonely river all the way from El Paso to Brownsville. 
At one time President Taft mobilized the greater part 
of the regular army within easy reach of the Texas- 
Mexican border. On several occasions, as withdrawals 
have taken place, reinforcements have been hurried to 
Texas. During this period of several years, parts of 
the border have been patrolled at all times, and there is 
scarcely a mile which has not at some time echoed to 
the steady tramp of the advance sentry of Uncle Sam. 
For a nimiber of these brave boys, the patrol along the 
Rio Grande has been the last beat, and "taps" was 
181 



182 Texas, the Marvellous 

sounded. A flash in the night, and an American boy was 
no more. Sometimes the bullets were fired purposely by 
some sombreroed son of Mexico, and again the tragedy 
has been the result of a stray shot across the border. 
The contending forces on the Mexican side have not 
been particular about the direction in which their guns 
were aimed. In either event the result was the same — 
mourning in some home on this side of the international 
boundary; a freshly-made grave for the victim of an 
untimely death. 

I had a little personal experience with the recklessness 
of the Mexican revolutionary troops. In company with 
three newspaper correspondents, I was exploring the 
American side of the Rio Grande near Brownsville and 
directly opposite where a desperate battle had been fought 
a few days before. Many bodies of dead horses on the 
river bank, and in the fields adjoining, marked the scene 
of the skirmish, in which three hundred Villistas were 
slain. The whole scene was plainly visible from our point 
of observation, for the river is not very wide at this 
point. 

Some fresh marks in the sand near us prompted our 
curiosity, since they looked as if something had entered 
the sand from the direction of the Mexican shore. In 
each case we would find a bullet imbedded only a few 
inches in the sand. They had undoubtedly landed there 
at the time of the battle. At least two of the bullets were 
of the dum-dum (soft-nosed) variety, so condemned in 
modern warfare. All this time rifles were cracking from 
the trenches, which were not more than four hundred 
yards distant. Occasionally the peculiar sound of the 
Mauser bullet was heard. We could see a couple of scouts 
of the enemy concealed in some corn at which they were 
evidently shooting. Finally one bullet sounded as if it 



Along the Rio Grande 183 

exploded almost over us. It startled but did not alarm 
me. 

"It is time for us to skip," said the New York man, 
who had followed the Villa forces for two years, and 
had witnessed many a skirmish. "I know that sound, and 
that bullet was too near for comfort." 

"You are right," said the San Antonio representative, 
who had served three years in the United States Army, 
and knew something about bullets. I knew nothing 
about bullets, but I was willing to accept the advice of 
those who were wiser than I, and I followed the others 
up the bank and back into the cane. It was interesting 
enough finding the bullets in the sand on the bank of the 
Rio Grande, for they were perfectly harmless there. 

During the late summer and early autumn of 191 5, up 
to the time of the recognition of Carranza, the disturb- 
ances along the Rio Grande reached their climax. Or- 
ganized bands composed of Mexican soldiers and refu- 
gees terrorized a large section in and around Brownsville, 
and reaching almost to Laredo. Some of their raids ex- 
tended from fifty to seventy-five miles north of Browns- 
ville. This has not been a difficult feat because of the 
thinly settled character of the country, while the mesquite 
and chaparral furnished abundant cover. Furthermore, 
the fact that at least two-thirds of the inhabitants were 
of the same race, promised additional security, for they 
were reluctant to betray those of the same blood. The 
most audacious act of the Mexican desperadoes was the 
wrecking of a passenger train just a few miles north 
of Brownsville, by which lawless act and the shooting 
that followed, a couple of Americans were killed and sev- 
eral severely wounded. Almost every home of Ameri- 
cans in that section became an armed camp. The anti- 
arms law of the State was openly violated, and people 



184 Texas, the Marvellous 

went about armed and ready for any trouble. They 
formulated themselves into walking arsenals. Cattle 
and horses were stolen by the raiders and driven across 
the river. 

It was claimed, and some proof was adduced, that an 
organized movement had arisen to win back a section of 
the country for Mexico. The invaders evidently believed 
that the entire Mexican population would welcome them 
with open arms. Several hundred United States troops 
were again despatched to Brownsville and other points 
to stop the depredations and capture the depredators. In 
this work the small body of rangers assisted, and special 
deputies were sworn in by the county sheriffs. Several 
United States troopers, and a still greater number of 
Texans lost their lives. Several pitched battles occurred 
between small bodies of Mexicans and the Americans, 
but as usual the Mexicans fired wildly, while the Texans 
and troopers were more deliberate and their aim was 
better. The niamber of Mexicans who were slain has 
never been made known, but it must have been many 
score. 

It was a strange looking body of revolutionists that 
I visited opposite Brownsville at the time of these trou- 
bles. You would have thought them bandits, or guerillas. 
Their uniforms were all shades of khaki, and tan. Some 
wore fatigue hats ; in other cases hats inclosed the wear- 
ers. All were "armed to the teeth" with gims, pistols, 
knives, and cartridge-belts. Are these soldiers, or has 
a boy scout troop been turned loose here? This was the 
thought that occurred to me, as I saw some of the "sol- 
diers" walking about the camp. 

"How many years have you?" I asked a boy in the 
idiomatic Spanish. 

"Fourteen years, senor," he said in a boyish voice. 



Along the Rio Grande 185 

But he had already seen two years of service in the revo- 
lutionary armies. 

Seated on their horses, these boys were almost hidden 
by their big hats, and they were so small that they 
seemed entirely out of place in the big Mexican saddles. 
These are the kind of soldiers that filled the ranks of 
all the contending parties. Few commands carried a com- 
missary department, but the soldiers were compelled to 
forage for themselves. As forage became scarce on the 
Mexican side, these men had no scruples against crossing 
the Rio Grande into a land of plenty and helping them- 
selves. Having been accustomed for months, and even 
several years, to taking private property on the Mexican 
side without questioning ownership, it was an easy matter 
to stifle any scruples that might yet remain when neces- 
sity arose and only a river lay between want and abun- 
dance. 

When there has been no revolutionary disturbance in 
the years past, the border patrol has been obliged to look 
out for smugglers, of whom there were many. The 
smugglers were as likely to be Americans as Mexicans. 
Sometimes a venturesome stockman would attempt to 
drive an entire herd of cattle, or a bunch of horses, 
across the Rio Grande in order to evade the duty. It 
might only be a little tobacco. It was the revenue officers' 
duty to prevent all smuggling of every sort. The barrier 
was not without its loopholes, but they did very well 
considering the paucity of men and the hundreds of miles 
of border. Uncle Sam may well be proud of his offi- 
cers. 

In descending the Rio Grande from El Paso there is 
no really important port until Eagle Pass is reached. 
Presidio, in the county of the same name, is an old set- 
tlement and has long been a port of entry and the seat 



186 Texas, the Marvellous 

of a custom house. It is opposite the Mexican town of 
Presidio del Norte. Upon the completion of the railroad 
headed this way, Presidio will undoubtedly become a 
town of much greater importance. Some of the scenery 
along the Rio Grande between El Paso and Eagle Pass 
is beautiful, and its loneliness is seldom disturbed by the 
traveller. One of the grandest and most imposing sights 
is where the Pecos River pours its waters into the Rio 
Grande, a short distance above Del Rio. The Pecos 
approaches the larger stream through a canyon which it 
has carved out to a depth of several hundred feet. The 
Rio Grande, formerly the Rio Bravo, also runs between 
walls of garnet and grey rocks which are hollowed out 
into natural caves. Above the Pecos the waters of the 
Rio Grande are clearer than below, for the yellow and 
turbid flood of the Pecos colours it. 

"O vale of Rio Bravo! Let thy simple children weep; 
Close watch about their holy fire let maids of Pecos keep; 
Let Taos send her cry across Sierra Madre's pines, 
And Algodones toll her bells amidst her com and vines; 
For Lo! the pale land seekers come, with eager eyes of gain, 
Wide scattering, like the bison herds, on broad Salada's plain. " 

Eagle Pass has become quite an important border city 
in recent years. Here a branch of the Southern Pacific 
meets the Mexican National and forms what is called 
the International Railroad. Eagle Pass is one of the 
natural outlets for Mexican trade, as it lies at the entrance 
to one of the most fertile regions of the Mexican border. 
It has now developed into a prosperous little city, far sur- 
passing the town of Piedras Negras, or Ciudad Porfirio 
Diaz, on the other side of the Rio Grande. Near Eagle 
Pass is old Fort Duncan, which, for many years, was 
one of the most important military posts of the border. 



Along the Rio Grande 187 

■ 

This fort had its beginning soon after the Mexican War 
when a company of soldiers established Camp Duncan 
here in March, 1849. A little later the site was acquired 
b}' the United States, and eventually a modern fort with 
substantial stone buildings was constructed. It was 
abandoned in 1905 and remained unoccupied for almost 
five years, when the troubles across the border caused 
it to be occupied once more. The first settlement estab- 
lished here was called California Camp, as so many Cali- 
fornia iinmigrants were stranded here during the gold 
excitement. Many of these afterwards became gamblers 
and highwaymen, so it is said by local authorities. Dur- 
ing the Civil War, and for a few years afterwards, there 
were no soldiers here and the conditions were almost 
unsafe for a law-abiding white man. For almost a de- 
cade it was abandoned to the Indians, a few renegade 
white men, and unscrupulous Mexicans. 

Through Eagle Pass formerly ran a great trade route 
from Durango and Chihuahua northward to San An- 
tonio and St. Louis. This was carried on by means of 
caravans, and was an active competitor of the famous 
Santa Fe Trail. It took a merchant about forty days 
to go from Chihuahua to New York by way of New 
Orleans, and he was lucky to receive his purchases within 
ten months from the time he left his home city. One 
will still see relics of that age in the carretas, or wooden- 
wheeled carts, without a particle of iron in their construc- 
tion, across the border. The wheels are hewn from a 
single block of wood, and they are yoked to the patient 
oxen by a rigid cross-bar lashed to their horns. 

The most important border point in Southern Texas 
is Laredo. This city is generally reached by travellers 
over the International and Great Northern Railway from 
San Antonio, about one hundred and fifty miles almost 



188 Texas, the Marvellous 

directly north. The -route traverses a country of ranches 
covered with mesquite and the prickly pear, not greatly 
unlike the territory west of San Antonio. There are 
immense tracts almost immediately tributary to the rail- 
road that are practically unoccupied. The trouble is 
that it is owned in large tracts by wealthy men, who have 
never attempted any intensive improvement of their 
holdings. 

Laredo is one of the oldest settlements in Texas, since 
its history covers more than a century and a half. For 
a long time it was the only permanent settlement on the 
north side of the Rio Grande. It was founded in 1755 
by one Don Thomas Sanchez, to whom liberal conces- 
sions were made. Its founding differed from the older 
settlements of Texas in that there was neither mission 
nor presidio, and there was not even a resident priest. 
It was simply an armed camp of settlers like those early 
settlements of Anglo-Americans. As the settlement was 
not bothered by Indians, it became quite prosperous. It 
proved to be the only permanent settlement of Spaniards 
on the lower Rio Grande. 

Ranches and haciendas gradually extended over the 
country toward the Nueces, and in the early part of the 
last century extensive herds of cattle were pastured be- 
tween those rivers. The remains of the stone buildings, 
wells and water-tanks may still be seen. During the 
troublous times following the attempts of the Mexican 
people to separate themselves from Spain, however, the 
savage tribes again made raids upon this country and 
caused much devastation. The war of the Texas Revo- 
lution disturbed the peaceful security of the inhabitants 
but little. In 1842 Laredo was occupied by Texas troops, 
and again during the Mexican War the soldiers of the 
United States took possession and a military post was 



Along the Rio Grande 189 

' — 

established. Fort Mcintosh was constructed at that time. 
It has since been rebuilt until it is one of the very im- 
portant border posts. 

Laredo still retains many reminders of its early years. 
Until the construction of the railroads, it was absolutely 
isolated from the rest of the State and in much closer 
touch with Mexico. The prevailing architecture is of 
plain stone or sun-dried adobe brick walls, and many 
of these buildings are covered with thatch roofs. In them 
dwell the Mexican labourers who constitute the majority 
of the inhabitants. The railroad above mentioned, and 
the old Texas-Mexican which runs to Corpus Christi, to- 
gether with the Mexican National which connects the 
border with the City of Mexico, have given Laredo the 
title of "Gateway to Mexico." Just across the river 
is the Mexican town of Nuevo (new) Laredo, which is 
a typical Mexican town, and has suffered a great deal 
during the latest revolutionary troubles. 

A few years ago an enterprising citizen discovered 
that the soil here was well adapted for truck farming, and 
that the Rio Grande would provide the necessary mois- 
ture which was not more conveniently bestowed by natu- 
ral rainfall. He specialized in the Bermuda onions, and, 
as a result of the development of this industry, Laredo 
has become one of the greatest shipping points for this 
odoriferous vegetable, so pleasing to many palates if not 
to the olfactory nerves. They are among the first on 
the market, and as many as two thousand carloads have 
been shipped from here in a single season. Tremendous 
returns were realized for a time, but distance from mar- 
kets and troubles with commission houses have been at 
times serious drawbacks. 

Turn to a map of Texas and follow the Rio Grande 
to the mouth. You will there find a triangular section 



190 Texas, the Marvellous 

of country bounded by the river on one side and the Gulf 
of Mexico on the other. This forms what might with 
truth be called Uttermost Texas. It is also Southern- 
most United States, for the lowest point is nearer to the 
Equator than the mainland of Florida. A map of Texas, 
published a little more than half a century ago, desig- 
nated it as "a wilderness occupied only by droves of 
wild horses." On a map published in 1839, which I ex- 
amined, the following explanation was printed across 
this great section : "Of this section of country very little 
is known. From the fact that the Nueces on the south 
side and the Rio Grande on the north side are without 
any considerable tributaries, it is inferred that it is mostly 
a dry elevated prairie." This is all the information that 
was vouchsafed about that section of Texas, larger than 
our Middle West States, lying between those two rivers 
and as far west as Laredo, and on a line drawn north- 
east from that city to its junction with the Nueces. 

It would be a surprise to that cartographer to visit 
to-day some parts of this vast domain, which he dis- 
missed with a single paragraph. This territory between 
the Nueces and Rio Grande was always a subject of 
contest between the Texans and Mexicans, which was 
only settled after the Mexican War. When the question 
of sovereignty was adjudicated, the territory was divided 
into a number of counties and the name Cameron given 
to the most southerly one. It remained a scene of dis- 
turbance for a period even subsequent to our own Civil 
War. As late as 1867 it was said to be "subject to occa- 
sional raids from Indians and Mexicans, and only suited 
to those who are willing to live where they are subject to 
such occurrences." Mexican revolutionists freely crossed 
back and forth and added to the turmoil. At that time 
fully four-fifths of the population were Mexican, but 



Along the Rio Grande 191 

now the proportion as a whole is about half. In some 
sections the proportion is much greater. With the excep- 
tion of Brownsville, the whole region was practically un- 
inhabited up to 1890, save for herdsmen with their 
thousands and tens of thousands of cattle, horses and 
sheep. One realizes in travelling down here that although 
Texas has been occupied by the white man to some ex- 
tent for almost four centuries, it is still somewhat new 
in spots, and big spots at that. 

Proceeding down the Rio Grande towards its mouth 
from Laredo, there are no towns of great importance 
until Brownsville is reached. The population is sparse 
and scattered. Large regions are still not provided with 
railroad service. Stock raising is the principal industry, 
and large numbers of cattle feed on the range. Even 
though it does require ten acres to feed one steer, there 
are so many acres that the number of cattle mounts into 
the hundreds of thousands. Although tin cans may not 
be superabundant, goats seem to thrive on the prickly 
pear and other cacti, and may be found by the tens of 
thousands. The old settlement of Carriza has been re- 
named Zapata, and is the county seat of the county of 
the same name. Rio Grande City is the county seat of 
Starr County. Both of these towns are on the river. 
Opposite Roma is the old Mexican town of Mier, which 
was the objective point of the disastrous Texas expedi- 
tion in 1842. The Texas Almanac of 1857, in speaking 
of this section of the country, says that the population are 
said to be nine-tenths Mexican, engaged in agriculture 
and stock raising. Three- fourths of the Americans were 
reported to be teachers and merchants, and the other 
fourth gamblers and blacklegs. The writer may have 
made the latter proportion a little too small from a natural 
prejudice in favour of his State. 



192 Texas, the Marvellous 

Up to 1905, when the railroad was completed into 
Brownsville, this lower section of the great State of Texas 
was absolutely isolated. It was necessary for the peo- 
ple to travel more than one hundred miles by stage to 
Alice, the county seat of the new Jim Wells County, a 
journey of almost two days, to reach the nearest railroad 
connection, if they wished to go to the capital or any 
other section of the State. As a result they did not go 
visiting very often. It is probably for that reason that 
this district has remained the most backward section of 
the State, and one will find still in existence the most 
primitive methods of agriculture. You might easily 
imagine yourself in Mexico, for the Mexican characteris- 
tics seem to prevail. You will see many a Mexican 
ploughing with a yoke of oxen which are yoked by the 
horns in the cruel way characteristic of Mexico. Wagons 
and carts are also drawn in the same way. The great 
eyes of the poor beasts bulge out as though ready to fall 
from their sockets when travelling over a rough road. I 
saw many thatched and reed huts, which are exactly the 
same as one will find in the tropical parts of Mexico and 
Central America as well. They look anything rather than 
American, and one is surprised to find such dwelling- 
places within our own borders. One or two rooms will 
accommodate a very large family. 

The city of Brownsville had its origin just prior to the 
Mexican War, when General Zachary Taylor established 
a fort on the Rio Grande not far from its mouth. It 
was on the 25th day of March, 1846, that the "Army of 
Occupation," under the command of General Taylor, 
reached Point Isabel, on the Gulf near the mouth of the 
Rio Grande, which Taylor intended to use as a base of 
operations and a depot of supplies. Leaving a garrison 
here, he advanced up the Rio Grande to a point almost 



Along the Rio Grande 193 

opposite the Mexican town of Matamoras. Here he 
erected Fort Brown, which was named after Major 
Brown, whom he left in charge. During a month spent 
in the construction of defensive works numerous com- 
munications came to him from the Mexican commanders. 
As his instructions were to do nothing aggressive until 
an "open act of hostiHty" occurred. General Taylor 
remained inactive. Hearing that the Mexicans were 
crossing the river, however, both above and below the 
fort, he despatched a small reconnoitring party under 
Captain Thornton. Just how the engagement began is 
not settled, but the Mexicans were victorious and cap- 
tured all of this party who were not killed. 

This was the "open act of hostility" for which Taylor 
waited. He reported the occurrence to Washington, and 
President Polk sent the memorable message to Congress, 
in which he said : "Mexico has invaded our territory and 
shed American blood upon American soil." This message 
led to a declaration by Congress that a state of war ex- 
isted between Mexico and the United States. 

Taylor returned to Point Isabel, after leaving a gar- 
rison of five hundred men with some artillery to defend 
Fort Brown. On May 3rd the Mexicans began an at- 
tack upon Fort Brown which continued for six days, with 
inconsequential losses to the Americans. One of them, 
however, was Major Brown, after whom the fort had 
been named. Taylor could hear the cannonading from 
Point Isabel, and he turned his face again toward Fort 
Brown. In the afternoon of May 8th, at a point almost 
midway between Point Isabel and Fort Brown, and 
known as Palo Alto, he encountered the Mexicans block- 
ing his way. It was a head-on collision between hostile 
forces, for dense thickets lined the road on either side. 
The Mexicans greatly outnumbered the American troops, 



194 Texas, the Marvellous 

but the latter had better guns and were more accurate 
gunners. When night fell, the field was in the posses- 
sion of General Taylor's army, the enemy having been 
gradually forced back from their successive positions. 
Such was the battle of Palo Alto, which was an inde- 
cisive engagement and fought almost entirely by artillery. 
The enemies' casualties were over six hundred, while 
Taylor's loss amounted to but fifty-six men. 

At dawn of the following day General Taylor re- 
sumed his march toward Fort Brown, although he was 
fully aware that another battle must be fought before he 
could reach that fortress now under siege. Strong rein- 
forcements joined the Mexicans, who occupied a strong 
position upon a great ravine called Resaca de la Palma. 
The Mexican General Arista had selected this position 
with care, and he had his cannon strategically placed. A 
fierce cliarge of the American cavalry and a succession of 
bayonet charges, however, won the day. As the Mexicans 
fled, the Rio Grande became filled with the corpses of 
those who had ventured to swim its current in an attempt 
to reach the other shore. By this battle the boundary line 
between Mexico and the United States was definitely fixed 
at the Rio Grande for the first time. With odds against 
him of fully three to one, and with a paltry loss of one 
hundred and thirty-seven men, Taylor had won an im- 
portant victory. Fort Brown was relieved, and a few 
weeks afterward Taylor started on his victorious march 
down into the interior of Mexico. 

Following the Mexican War a settlement grew up at 
one side of Fort Brown. The original fort has disap- 
peared, but a later one still stands, although it has been 
abandoned as a permanent fort. Brownsville has now 
become a considerable place. Until recent years it was 
chiefly important for its military post. During the Civil 



Along the Rio Grande 195 

War it was captured and garrisoned with Federal troops 
for a time, thus cutting off the Confederate trade from 
up and down the river. It was in August, 1906, that the 
notorious "Brownsville Raid," by coloured soldiers of 
the Twenty-fifth United States Infantry, occurred on the 
Fort Brown reservation. For several years after that 
the post was unoccupied until it was made one of the 
points of occupation for the American army guarding 
the border after the Madero revolution in Mexico. 

Brownsville is the metropolis of the lower Rio Grande 
region, with a population of some seven or eight thou- 
sand. The majority of the people that one sees there even 
to-day are Mexicans. It has managed in some inexplica- 
ble way to retain its old Spanish atmosphere. The 
strenuous air of the American city is indistinguishable. 
The Spanish tongue will be heard more than the English. 
The waterworks for the greater part of the city consists 
of a barrel, mounted on two wheels, and drawn by a 
burro. It is just the same as you will find in many 
towns south of the Rio Grande River, but which I have 
never seen in any other city under the Stars and Stripes. 
Mexican candy vendors will be found stationed at many 
corners selling the "dulces," and women will offer for 
sale exquisite pieces of drawnwork, which has been smug- 
gled into the country. Around the market the usual 
crowd of loafers, both men and women, will be gathered. 

There is the same easy-going, "to-morrow" spirit vis- 
ible in Brownsville that is so common in Mexican towns. 
On Simday mornings the women will be seen on their 
way to church with faces enshrouded in black shawls 
after the Spanish custom. The men go across the river 
to Matamoras to see the bull-fight that is forbidden on 
this side. The cab driver and his horses alike seem to 
belong to the last century, and appear to be enjoying a 



196 Texas, the Marvellous 

sort of Rip Van Winkle sleep. The population is an 
amazing mixture of old-time, quick-on-the-trigger Tex- 
ans, who would brook no insult, and the more abrupt 
and business-like man from the North ; from the success- 
ful Mexican merchant who has made his pile in the States, 
and would not return across the Rio Grande to live under 
any circumstances, to the drifting and floating peon who 
is here to-day and there to-morrow. 

It is only a short ride by ferry and horse car from 
Brownsville to the Mexican city of Matamoras, which 
used to be the capital of the State of Tamaulipas; or one 
can walk there by crossing the international bridge, com- 
pleted in 1910, and situated a short distance above Mata- 
moras, and which would probably be a walk of three 
miles. This bridge was intended to be used for a railroad 
connection. The ferry owner has made so much money 
that he lives in such cities as New York and Paris. The 
fare is only three cents in American money. Brownsville 
was laid out by the father of this millionaire, and it is for 
that reason that he still retains an interest in the town 
of his birth by operating the ferry. The only narrow 
gauge railway in Texas connects Brownsville with Point 
Isabel, and it is a relic of the old days. It was used to 
convey freight to Point Isabel where it could be trans- 
ferred to the coasting vessels. Its antiquated equipment 
is now better fitted to ornament a museum than for actual 
use. The completion of the other railroad made the 
water connection of less value than formerly. 

The Wild West of the shows is no more. A Wild 
West show would not be so exciting, but it would be more 
truthful. If you see any one carrying revolvers, he is 
sure to be an officer — deputy sheriff or otherwise. The 
revolver is the Texan officer's insignia of office; it cor- 
responds to the policeman's badge at home. A few Texas 



Along the Rio G-rande 197 

Rangers still exist, about twenty in all. I saw several 
of them at Brownsville, where they had been called by 
border troubles. This semi-militia, semi-military organ- 
ization has had a brilliant career, and it did more toward 
bringing order out of chaos on the broad plains of Texas 
than any other one influence. The Rangers are a pic- 
turesque body, but wear no regular uniform or badge, 
except the belt of cartridges around the waist. They 
are also adorned with the big Texas hat, the very largest 
size obtainable. We are accustomed to think of them 
only as mere shadows drawing away into the dimness of 
times long past; only as part of the romance of life 
which we came too late to share. For years, however, 
there have been two companies of seven men each, and 
the numbers are at times increased to meet emergencies. 
An old ranger can relate many thrilling stories about the 
former "bad men" of the West and the border. But the 
real Texas "bad man" of to-day is a rare individual. An 
old range song has a verse about the Rangers which runs 
as follows: 

" Come, all you Texas Rangers, wherever you may be, 
A story I will tell you that happened unto me. 
My name is nothing extra, so that I will not tell — 
I am a roving ranger, although I wish you well." 

The mounted police of Canada is the only other similar 
organization to the Texas Rangers on this continent. 
They have been called down to this neighbourhood around 
Brownsville more frequently than to any other one sec- 
tion in Texas in recent years. Their service is more 
effective than that of the regular soldiers, for they pay 
less consideration to the possibilities of international 
complications. "Killed in resisting arrest" is a very fre- 
quent report of a ranger, and it is always considered a 



198 Texas, the Marvellous 

satisfactory explanation of the death of an outlaw or 
criminal attempting to evade arrest. 

Almost anything appears to thrive in this sub-tropical 
climate of Southernmost Texas. One is confronted by 
real bananas growing out-of-doors, and orange trees are 
very common. One will find figs, prunes, apricots, 
lemons, black walnuts and English walnuts, Japanese per- 
simmons and many other kinds of fruits growing here 
luxuriously. The natives are luxuriating in strawberries, 
green peas, and other garden truck produced in their 
own gardens in midwinter. I rode over one large estate 
during which we passed through a jungle which could be 
photographed as a jungle of the Philippines or some 
other tropical land, and none could distinguish the dififer- 
ence. The trees were covered with Spanish moss, vines, 
and all sorts of parasitic growths. Bamboo and other 
canes contributed to the jungle confusion. There were 
hundreds of palms growing in the fields and woods, which 
gave a decidedly tropical setting. In one place there 
was a regular village of thatched huts, in which lived 
the Mexican labourers, that could be pictured as a tropicaJ 
village, and few would be able to recognize the deception. 

From fifty to a hundred miles north of Brownsville 
there is a sandy soil which has little promise of cultiva- 
tion. But nearer Brownsville the soil becomes a black, 
brown and chocolate loam of unmistakable fertility. The 
plant life changes from sparse mesquite of stunty growth 
to tall, lacy groves of the same tree, interspersed with 
ebony, Spanish dagger, and chaparral. Here it is that a 
semi-tropical effulgence surprises the visitor. These lands 
have been much exploited. In fact the country seems to 
have gone promotion-mad. The men who began the 
movement were promoters simply, and not developers. 
Millions have been poured into irrigation plants, and 



Along the Rio Q-rande 199 

into digging leagues upon leagues of irrigation canals, 
and still more leagues of laterals. Great sugar plants 
were put up before there was any real prospect of a suffi- 
cient supply of cane. 

In the course of a few years half a million acres of 
land were blocked out, much more than the available 
supply of water could irrigate. The land is generally 
level, which makes irrigation an easy matter. More than 
two hundred miles of main canals and two and a half 
times as many laterals were dug. Settlers were inveigled 
by lurid literature, which was sent out by the ton. But 
they were the wrong kind of settlers. As a result of 
this, and erroneous calculation as to crops and soil, a 
number of these projects have been abandoned. The 
shifting channel of the river has also caused trouble 
for some of the pumping plants. Such pranks are not 
uncommon with this uncertain stream. I visited one large 
farm on the banks of the river where the pumping station 
was idle, the canals dry, and the beautiful ranch house 
falling into decay. This is only one of several similar 
enterprises that have met a like fate. 

The greatest success has been achieved along the branch 
railroad running from Harlingen west to Samfordyce. A 
substantial basis of prosperity seems to have been reached 
along here. Within a few years has come the transforma- 
tion of a waste tract of mesquite into an expansive garden 
miles across. All kinds of truck farming have been ex- 
perimented with, and enormous crops of vegetables can 
be grown. Thousands of carloads of onions, cabbage, 
lettuce, beans, tomatoes, and other garden products are 
shipped to the city markets each year. Palms rustle in the 
breeze, and flowers bloom in almost every yard. Mer- 
cedes is the show place, and is in the centre of an irri-. 
gating system of one hundred and twenty thousand acres. 



200 Texas, the Marvellous 

The largest pumping plant in the United States supplies 
it with water. Because it is so far away from the great 
cities, the marketing of produce has proved one great 
stumbling-block. A lack of available cars when needed 
and high freight charges have also wrought havoc. To 
this has been added rather poor car service. To meet 
these drawbacks a co-operative association has been 
formed, with regular corps of officers, and with offices 
in both Chicago and St. Louis, to look after this all- 
important feature. Around McAllen the fanners are 
experiencing prosperity through the use of dairy cattle. 
If no complications arise with Mexico over the use of 
the water from the Rio Grande, great development will 
follow. Under an old treaty with that country, however, 
the Rio Grande was recognized as a navigable stream. 
With the opening of the Elephant Butte Dam above El 
Paso, and the many other local projects along the Pecos 
and the Rio Grande itself, it looks as if there will hardly 
be enough water left to float a good-sized canoe. Even 
the Mexicans will probably recognize that the water is 
immensely more valuable for irrigation than the floating 
of boats; if so, they will probably demand their share of 
the water. It is claimed that none of the water from the 
upper river will reach the lower river, so that the supply 
for these projects must come from the streams below 
El Paso. A number of these feeders come from the 
Mexican side. For that reason Mexico will have an 
especially strong claim for its share of the water. 



CHAPTER XII 



EAST TEXAS 



The history of East Texas centres around and about 
the town of Nacogdoches. Up to the period that Ameri- 
can settlers began to pour into Texas under the leadership 
of the various concessionaires, Nacogdoches was the only 
settlement of any considerable importance north and 
east of San Antonio. It exercised jurisdiction over all 
East Texas practically down to the time of the Revolu- 
tion. Almost an equal distance across the Sabine River, 
in what is now the State of Louisiana, and what was then 
the old Spanish and French province of the same name, 
was the town of Natchitoches, which was the western- 
most outpost of French, and then American settlements. 
Between these two frontier stations there was constant 
intercourse and contraband trade, in spite of the rigid 
royal decree interdicting commerce between the inhabi- 
tants of Texas and Louisiana. After the United States 
had acquired the territory of Louisiana in 1803, and as 
a result of the many filibustering and revolutionary ex- 
peditions organized for the purpose of conquering Texas, 
Nacogdoches became a frontier military post, or presidio, 
and a garrison of Spanish soldiers was maintained there 
for a number of years. 

Nacogdoches was the usual terminus of the Old San 
Antonio Road, as was San Antonio the end of the west- 
ern journey for the greater part of the traffic. This fa- 
mous highway was a noted trail in the early days, which 
201 



202 Texas, the Marvellous 

is often called for in the early prairie surveys of many 
counties. It started originally from a mission church in 
Louisiana and had been travelled for over a hundred 
years by mission priests, led by an "Intendant," and pro- 
tected by an escort of Spanish cavalry in their annual 
visitations of the missions of San Jose, Concepcion and 
San Juan, near San Antonio ; then they visited the mission 
on the San Saba, until after the priests there w^ere mas- 
sacred by the Indians. The annual visitations continued 
to the missions at El Paso, on the Gila River in Arizona, 
and terminated at the missions in California. In later 
years a perpetual stream of ox-carts laden with produce 
of all kinds, and carrying the effects of incoming immi- 
grants, passed along the rough, and, at times, almost im- 
passable highway. 

The Old San Antonio Road crossed the Colorado River 
eighteen miles below Austin, before the town of Bastrop 
was built. After Bastrop was located it intersected the 
Colorado at that point. Its location could be traced 
across Texas in many places as late as 1852. The first 
station east of the Sabine on the old San Antonio Road 
was the historic old town of San Augustine, which was 
long known as "The Gateway to Texas." It was also 
distinguished as the Athens of the State, because it ac- 
tually possessed a three-story university and another 
smaller college. After the old highway ceased to be the 
main artery of traffic, San Augustine remained isolated, 
difficult of access, and became secondary to the many 
newer centres of population. 

The name of Nacogdoches is derived from that of a 
body of Indians, whose principal village was somewhere 
within the present county of the same name. The prin- 
cipal centre of Spanish missionary and colonization en- 
terprise in Eastern Texas was at Nacogdoches. The in- 



East Texas 203 

itial work began with the closing years of the seventeenth 
century, and, in 1716, one of the group of missions and 
military garrisons (presidios), designed to protect the 
authority of Spain in Eastern Texas, was established in 
the vicinity of the present town. Within half a century 
numerous Spanish and French traders, as well as many 
friendly Indians, had settled in and about Nacogdoches, 
where there were many opportunities for trade with 
Louisiana. When the royal order, issued in 1 772, for the 
abandonment of all the missions and settlements in East- 
ern Texas arrived, there was naturally much dissatisfac- 
tion and resentment among the inhabitants. The removal 
of the sacred vestments and the insignia was made to San 
Antonio under the escort of a military guard, but many 
of the inhabitants remained behind. They preferred to 
remain and take a hazard rather than abandon lucrative 
business and seek a new location. This marks the real 
beginning of the history of Nacogdoches as a commercial 
settlement rather than a mission outpost. 

Until the adjustment of the Texas-Louisiana boundary 
in 1 8 19, Nacogdoches suffered a great deal. It was oc- 
cupied on several occasions by American revolutionary 
expeditions, and again by the Spanish forces. Spain en- 
acted retribution divers times upon the inhabitants be- 
cause of the supposed sympathy for Americans. When 
Stephen Austin passed through Nacogdoches in 1821, 
he found the town in ruins, with only one church and 
seven houses standing around the public square. The 
stone house was the only relic of the early days left, and 
it imfortunately has disappeared at the present time in 
the onward march of improvement. This town was the 
central point of the Fredonian War in 1826, and was 
again the scene of what is known as the Nacogdoches 
Rebellion of 1838, in which the Mexican population. 



204 Texas, the Marvellous 

which had always been numerous, disclaimed their alle- 
giance to the new Republic. 

An old account of Nacogdoches (1856) speaks of it 
as follows: "The town is compact, the houses framed 
and boarded. One or two Mexican stone houses remain, 
and, like the Aztec structures in more southern cities, 
have been put to the uses of the invading race. One of 
these, fronting, with an arcade, on the square, is con- 
verted into a bar-room. About Nacogdoches there are 
many Mexicans still living. Two or three of them, 
wrapped in blankets and serapes, we saw leaning against 
posts, and looking on in grand decay. They preserve 
their exclusiveness, their priests, and their customs, in- 
termarrying only among themselves, and are considered 
lawless vagabonds." 

Poor Lo has almost disappeared from Texas, his old- 
time happy terrestrial hunting ground. In Polk County, 
however, still linger some of the Alabama Indians, as they 
are called, the sole surviving aborigines in Texas with 
the exception of those at Isleta, mentioned elsewhere. 
For this reason they are of interest in a book upon a 
State once overrun by that people. They number about 
two hundred. These Indians have been stripped of their 
buckskins, and now wear "hickory" shirts, cotton overalls, 
and brogans. From nomadic followers of the chase they 
have taken to more peaceful pursuits. They occupy a 
reservation of two square miles granted them by Texas in 
1854, and it is about as unproductive land as could be 
found in that section of the commonwealth. For that 
reason, and possibly for others as well, the tribe has not 
greatly prospered. The typical home is a one-room log 
house with a porch in front. One or more hungry dogs 
generally have possession of the front yard. The fur- 
niture is home-made. In every yard will be found a corn 



East Texas 205 



mortar, made of a hollowed-out log. The wooden pestle 
is about four or five feet long. With this they make the 
food called sotki, which is just a variety of hominy, and 
is their principal sustenance. The Indians are very hos- 
pitable, and they will share the last crust with the others. 

These Alabama Indians deserve better treatment by 
both State and National Governments. They are abso- 
lutely self-supporting, but ought to be granted more 
fertile land and more modern implements with which to 
cultivate it. The Presbyterian Church has maintained 
a missionary among them since 1881, and nearly all the 
tribe are professed members of that denomination. Their 
character has been greatly improved through this religious 
work, as the Indians have taken very kindly to it. The 
majority of the younger ones now possess some education, 
and are able to both read and write. In 19 13, Chief John 
Scott died at the age of one hundred and nine years. He 
migrated with his tribe to Texas in the early years of the 
last century, and had been a witness to all the political 
changes through which Texas has evolved. He remem- 
bered Sam Houston well, and recalled with pleasure his 
efforts to help the red men. 

It is a revelation to that misinformed person, who har- 
bours the idea that Texas is all treeless prairie, to travel 
through East Texas. This section is included in what 
is known as the timber belt of Texas. This is a broad 
belt of land extending from near the coast to the border 
of Oklahoma. Even at Nacogdoches, the oldest settled 
portion of Eastern Texas, the lumber industry still con- 
stitutes one of the chief resources. The country was 
originally heavily forested with the long-leaf and other 
pines, and with a great variety of hardwoods. Numerous 
rivers and creeks traverse East Texas, many of which 
are navigable and provide the means of transporting the 



206 Texas, the Marvellous 

timber to market. The land, except along the coast, is 
generally tondulating and slightly hilly. The streams are 
sluggish and discoloured, and are engirded by broad 
bottom lands which are subject to overflow. The soil is 
generally very rich, although much of it is sandy. 

The long-leaf pine district extends about half the 
way up the State from the Gulf. Then comes the region 
of the short-leaf pine, and the various hardwoods, of 
which oak is one of the most important. In some of 
these counties the cleared land has proved wonderfully 
well adapted for the cultivation of fruits. The grow- 
ing of peaches on a commercial basis for northern mar- 
kets has been followed for a considerable time, and their 
development has greatly spread. To-day thousands of 
refrigerator cars filled with peaches are shipped from this 
section each year. Cherokee County and the territory im- 
mediately surrounding is in the very heart of this fruit 
section. The fruit trees are numbered by the hundreds 
of thousands. The soil is of a sandy nature which is 
superimposed upon a porous red clay and is loose enough 
to afford good drainage. The cultivation of peaches has 
been followed by pears, plums, apples and almost all other 
fruits of the temperate zone, not excluding the luscious 
strawberry. 

This timber belt of Texas, generally speaking, lies be- 
tween the Trinity River and the eastern State line. To 
the west it reaches almost to a line with Dallas in some 
places, for Henderson County is one of the heavily tim- 
bered districts. In Bowie County, the extreme north- 
eastern county, it was estimated thirty years ago that 
nine-tenths of the county was covered with dense forests 
of oak and yellow pine. Only about five per cent of the 
land was then enclosed in farms, although there were 
small settlements here that antedated the Texas Revolu- 



East Texas 207 

tion. To-day more than half the county is included in 
farms, which demonstrates how industriously the saw- 
mills have been at work. As the lumberman has cleared 
off the forests, the agriculturist has followed, and the 
"cut-over" lands are being cultivated in increasing 
amounts each year. Almost as much corn is planted in 
this district as cotton. The same natural conditions apply 
to the other counties in this section. They are all in the 
timbered sections, although in some there may be a lit- 
tle more prairie than others, and again the hardwoods 
may predominate over pine, or vice versa. In some, more 
of the original timber is still standing than elsewhere. 
They were all in the slaveholding part of the State, and 
the negro population to-day will enumerate from one- 
fourth to one-third of the entire inhabitants. 

The post-oak is a prominent feature in Texas scenery. 
It is a somewhat small, broad-leaved oak of symmetrica! 
shape, and appears where the soil is light and sandy. 
It is an open forest growth, and grows in a sort of island 
in the large prairies. It is frequently not even eradicated 
before cultivating the soil, and in the districts farther 
west, where timber is scarce, an island of post-oak adds 
much to the value of the tract for sale, since it furnishes 
material for buildings and fences. 

A far more attractive tree than the post-oak is the live- 
oak, which here reaches its complete vigour and full foli- 
age. The live-oaks are almost invariably garlanded 
with festoons of the ornamental Spanish moss. Farther 
west they are more meagrely furnished with leaves, and 
on barren hills they remind one very much of the olive 
both in the shape and size of the tree, and in the hue of 
the leaves. On rocky ledges the tree will cling with its 
distorted roots, disputing the scanty nourishment with 
the stunted grass. The Spanish moss swings in the breeze 



208 Texas, the Marvellous 

with slow and pendulous motion, and seems to harmon- 
ize with the tree itself. 

The most important city in Northeastern Texas, and 
also one of the peculiar cities of the Union, is Texarkana, 
Tex-Ark. This is the formal method of addressing mail 
to this city, which is about equally divided between the 
States of Texas and Arkansas. At one time the Arkan- 
sas side of the city was the most populous, but the ma- 
jority of the population now resides on the Texas side. 
To prevent friction and jealousy, the common postoffice 
has been built exactly on the State line. But there are 
two separate city, county, and State governments. It 
even has two Federal courts, one for each State, a dis- 
tinction probably shared by no other city in the Republic. 
Likewise separate schools are maintained. There are 
two mayors and two city councils, but they get along quite 
harmoniously with one fire department, one waterworks, 
and one street railway system. This little city already 
celebrated its fortieth anniversary in 1913, and has be- 
come quite an important commercial town. 

The real development of the timber industry began 
in the neighbourhood of Beaumont. Here the waters of 
the Neches and the Sabine furnished convenient trans- 
portation to transport the lumber and other products to 
the various outside markets. For the same reason the 
merchantable timber in that neighbourhood disappeared 
earliest, so that by the beginning of the present century 
the cutting of lumber was already a failing business. 
Railroads have been extended up into the timber country, 
however, and Beaumont still retains a position of primary 
importance in the lumber industry of the State. 

The earliest mention of Beaumont is found in 1836, 
when the following paragraph appeared in a newspaper : 
"A town has lately been laid out on the tide water of the 



East Texas 209 



river Neches at a place known by the name of Tevis's 
Bluff. It has received the name of Beaumont." At the 
time of the Battle of San Jacinto this town was portrayed 
by a traveller as a hamlet of three or four houses. At 
a later period it developed into one of the flourishing small 
cities of Texas, but to the outside world it was an un- 
known and obscure town. 

Beaumont is probably best known to-day because of 
the almost unprecedented excitement caused by the dis- 
covery of remarkable gushing oil wells at what is known 
as Spindle Top, four miles south of Beaumont. This 
was in January, 1901, and in a few days the name of 
Beaumont was sounded familiarly in the streets and 
offices and even in the homes of the Americas and Europe. 
Because of the great publicity given to this discovery, 
one is inclined to think of Beaumont as a city dotted with 
oil derricks. As a matter of fact the entire Spindle Top 
pool was beneath an area of only about two hundred 
acres, and there is not a single oil derrick dotting the land- 
scape within several miles of the city of Beaumont. The 
original well, called the Lucas, began to flow at the rate 
of seventy .thousand barrels per day, which was unpar- 
alleled in this country. 

Within a period of six years upwards of forty mil- 
lion barrels of oil were marketed from that group of 
wells, notwithstanding the large amount wasted and con- 
sumed by fire. Hundreds of wells were put down at a 
great cost all around the Spindle Top pocket, but they 
were "dry holes." Within the narrow limits more than 
twelve hundred wells were sunk, and hundreds of derricks 
still stand, but the production of to-day is only a frac- 
tion of what it was in the days of the remarkable boom. 

As a result of the discovery of the petroleum, Beau- 
mont experienced an inflation such as has befallen few 



210 Texas, the Marvellous 

municipalities. It became the centre of attraction for 
every speculative person able to reach the town by either 
freight or passenger trains. Men were so eager to get 
there that they would bribe freight conductors and brake- 
men, or even steal their way over the railways in order 
to save a few hours of time. All the oil land was leased, 
stock companies were promulgated, wells were negotiated, 
and oil stock was being hawked on every side. It is re- 
liably stated that as many as twenty thousand strangers 
arrived in this town of ten thousand within a week after 
the first "gusher." Buildings of various kinds were con- 
tracted for so rapidly that the streets were made almost 
impassable, because of the accumulation of building ma- 
terial. The inflation has long since subsided, and Beau- 
mont has resumed a more normal existence. When the 
frenzy of speculation had precipitated itself, Beaumont 
still had a reserve of resources sufficient to take advantage 
of the substantial opportunities afforded. It is to-day one 
of the busy centres of the State, and the development of 
its permanent resources has supplanted the frenzy of 
speculation superinduced by the discovery of petroleum. 
At the present time Beaumont is more interested in 
developing its water terminals and shipping facilities than 
aught else. Like Houston, and with about an equal dis- 
tance from the Gulf, Beaumont has become a seaport. A 
channel to the depth of twenty-five feet has been dredged 
from the municipal quays to the Gulf. It is not a rival 
to Houston, for they are too far apart, but in itself Beau- 
mont will serve an immense territory, together with its 
railroad connections. With the aid of extensive dredging 
a large turning basin has been prepared, together with 
terminals to accommodate a large amount of shipping. 
When completed, the basin will be almost one-half mile 
across. The enterprise shown by the city is indeed com- 



iEast Texas 211 



mendable, and bespeaks a splendid future. Like most of 
the great improvements being made in Texas, the harbour 
and port improvements are a municipal undertaking. 

A thriving Httle city has sprung up on Sabine Lake, 
near Beaumont, which is named Port Arthur. This town 
did not have an existence until the Kansas City Southern 
Railway was completed in 1898. Since then it has grown 
and expanded in a marvellous manner. Not more than a 
decade after the founding of the city, street railways, 
waterworks, and the other modern improvements which 
go with a city had been completed. Two great oil re- 
fineries have been erected, and have since been enlarged 
until they are among the greatest refineries of this coun- 
try. The city is now almost surrounded by oil refineries 
and the complex activities of oil refining and transporta- 
tion. Pipe lines from Oklahoma and the various Texas 
oil fields concentrate here and at Beaumont, where there 
is also a large refinery, and the liquid wealth from these 
transformers is poured into the tank steamers which sail 
out over the Gulf to the markets of the world. A deep 
water ship canal has been completed from the shallow 
Sabine Lake to a point just south of the city, which has 
since passed under the control of the Federal Govern- 
ment. With the completion of this improvement, Port 
Arthur has become the largest concentration point for the 
oil industry of the Southwest. The city itself is develop- 
ing along attractive lines. 

Rice is becoming the king of products of Southeastern 
Texas on the coastal prairies of the Gulf. It is there 
what cotton is in a large section of the South, and what 
corn is to Illinois. As the traveller passes along that 
coast between Beaumont and Houston, he will see great 
fields stretching out on either side of the railroad track, 
through which irrigation canals run. Some of these fields 



212 Texas, the Marvellous 

are hundreds of acres in extent. This land is very flat, 
but there are occasionally diminutive ridges on which 
the main canal is placed. This plan is followed in order 
that the water may stand slightly above the general level 
of the land to be inundated. 

It is a mistaken idea that rice can only be produced 
on marsh land, for none of this soil could properly be 
classed as such. It is planted on elevated land, exactly 
the same as the wheat and oats of our Northern States, 
except that it is absolutely necessary for the land to 
be flooded during the growing season. This Texas rice 
land has an advantage over the rice lands in the Orient, 
because it can be ploughed and harrowed while it is yet 
dry, and when it is much easier to perform that work than 
after the water has been turned on. On the large farms it 
is broken by tractors pulling gangs of eight or ten ploughs. 

The cultivation of rice along the Gulf Coast began 
shortly after the Civil War. A small colony of Germans 
settled along that coast of Louisiana, in the Parish of 
Arcadia, and began to raise rice in a small way. The 
land was irrigated in the simplest method by means of a 
levee thrown up with a shovel; the grain was harvested 
with sickles, and threshed out with flails. The results 
of the labour of these Teutons demonstrated that the 
raising of rice along this coast was a profitable under- 
taking, and other settlers began to take up the work. 
Starting from such a small beginning, the march forward 
of this industry has been one of continued triumph. 

It was not until 1887 that the rice culture was taken 
up after modem methods, and with a larger outlay of 
capital. The industry responded to these new conditions 
and methods. Then it was that irrigation on a larger 
scale was attempted. Incorporated companies were 
formed to furnish the necessary water. Small ravines 



East Texas 213 



and gulleys were dammed up, and allowed to fill with 
water during the rainy months in order to provide an 
unfailing supply of water for irrigation during the period 
necessary. Small pumps operated by engines of five 
or six horse power were used to elevate the water to the 
fields in the growing season. The broadcast seeder at- 
tached to the farm wagon rapidly superseded the human 
planter carrying a bucket of rice and sowing the seed 
broadcast by hand. The self -binding harvester sup- 
planted the old-fashioned sickle and the cradle, just as 
it did in the grain fields of the North. The man who 
used to flail out a few sacks of rice in a day, when the 
wind blew enough to winnow it properly, was out of a 
job. The steam thresher could do more than a hundred 
times as much, and do it better. Sulky ploughs and 
gang ploughs replaced the implements formerly in use, 
and modem discs usurped the duties of the old-fashioned 
drag. 

Rice culture soon radiated from Louisiana to the coast 
of Texas, where the land was found equally suited to the 
cultivation of this important food product. The first 
effort of any magnitude was made near Port Arthur 
in Jefferson County, in 1897. After the Port Arthur 
Canal was installed, each year saw the number of acres 
sown to rice increased, and it was not long until a quarter 
of a million acres were thus employed. The yearly value 
of the crop ran up into the millions of dollars. The 
industry gradually extended to Houston, and even beyond 
that city, and to-day the rice fields may be seen almost 
to the Nueces River. 

This coastal plain in Texas, which is as level as it is 
possible for land to be, is crossed by a number of streams 
which afford a large water supply, and the elevation is 
sufficient to provide good drainage. The surface of the 



214 Texas, the Marvellous 

streams is generally lower than the lands to be irrigated, 
and it is frequently necessary to pump the water twenty- 
five or thirty feet into the irrigation canals. The canals 
are built by throwing up parallel levees over the prairie. 
For a main canal they are sometimes one hundred feet 
apart. The main canal is located on the highest ridge, so 
that all the land will be beneath the level of the water. 
Lateral canals branch off as frequently as are necessary. 
When the farmer wishes water, he simply lifts the flood- 
gates and permits the water to pour over his land. The 
period of irrigation generally continues about seventy 
days. 

It has also been found that an abundant supply of water 
could be reached at a comparatively slight depth, and 
many of the wells flowed; with others, it was necessary 
to pump only a few feet. Thousands of these wells have 
been sunk all over this rice belt of Texas, and the flow 
from one well is frequently sufficient to irrigate from 
one hundred to one hundred and fifty acres. 

It does not require a deep soil for rice, so we are told, 
and in fact it is better that a clay strata should be at a 
depth of twelve or fifteen inches under the surface. The 
ground in that variety of soil will dry much more quickly, 
and the harvesting is very much easier. One requisite, 
however, is that the surface must be nearly level, so that 
the water will stand evenly on the land. The ground is 
ploughed during the winter. The seed is usually sown 
in April and May. Soon afterward the fields are flooded, 
since the rice derives a large percentage of its nourish- 
ment from water. For that same reason it does not ex- 
haust the soil so quickly as other cereals, and many 
successive crops can be raised from the same land with- 
out any appreciable injury to the soil. When the plants 
begin to mature the water is turned off, and it requires 




jfwjL-^ 



East Texas 215 



from twelve to fifteen days for the soil to dry. The rice 
is then cut with self-binders, which differ very little from 
the binders used to harvest wheat and oats, and it is 
threshed with the same thresher employed for oats. 
The only noticeable difference in the machine is the 
broad wheels that are used to prevent sinking into the 
soft ground, which has not yet thoroughly dried. The 
rice is shocked much like wheat, and is allowed to dry 
for two or three weeks before it is threshed. Quite a 
number of Japanese will be found engaged in raising rice 
here in Texas. 

The Government reports the average yield of rice at 
twelve barrels per acre, but a farmer will frequently ob- 
tain fifteen and occasionally as much as twenty-five bar- 
rels of one hundred and sixty-two pounds each from a 
single acre. This will sell in the field for from three to 
four dollars per barrel. In all the principal towns rice 
warehouses will be found, just as grain elevators are lo- 
cated at the principal tovras in our Northern States. The 
rice, as it comes from the field, however, is far different 
from that which is sold over the counters of the comer 
grocery. I doubt if many people would be tempted by a 
dish of rice in its natural state, for it has a brownish 
colour. Before it is placed on the market all of the grain 
is sent to a rice mill, where it is thoroughly polished, 
which gives it the attractive whiteness that we find in 
the commercial rice. It probably does not add anything 
more to the nutritive value of the rice than does the 
whitening process through which flour passes. It may, 
in fact, detract from its nutritive value, but it does ren- 
der the rice more attractive and palatable. 

There is no grain that fills so important a part in the 
feeding of the world as does rice. It is the leading, and 
in some cases almost the only food, of from one-third 



216 Texas, the Marvellous 

to one-half of the entire human race. Rice constitutes 
the principal food of the teeming millions of China, who 
number one-quarter of the population of the globe. In 
Japan statistics show that rice forms half of the total 
sustenance of the many millions of that island. And yet 
the Japanese are credited with a great deal of endurance. 
The same may be said of India, with its population of a 
quarter of a billion. In Java, in the Philippines, and 
many of the islands of the Pacific, with their millions, 
upon millions of population, the people would starve were 
it not for the sustenance given them by rice. We can 
probably never supply more than a small proportion of 
the rice used in our country, but it is fortunate that 
such excellent rice lands have been discovered down here 
along the Gulf Coast. 



CHAPTER XIII 



THE BLACK WAXY BELT 



Robert E. Lee and some friends, who likewise became 
famous during the Civil War, were standing together out 
on the Texas prairie. The time was in the early fifties, 
so the story goes, and Lee was then an officer in the 
United States Army. Lee became pensive, and gazed 
out upon the boundless plain without uttering a word. 

"What do you see?" asked one of his companions. 

"I am listening to the footsteps of oncoming millions," 
was the answer. 

This prediction of the gi'eat Confederate leader has 
come true in a measure, and the process is continuing. 
One by one, two by two, score by score, they infiltrate 
across the boarder and increase the work of the next 
census taker. But there is no jostling as yet. Only in 
the vicinity of Dallas is the settling up of the State notice- 
able. One-third of the entire population will be found 
within one hundred miles of that city. Dallas and Fort 
Worth are growing rapidly, while many other prosperous 
towns and villages are scattered over this rich territory, 
which is known as the Black Waxy Belt. Even in the 
country a farmer can enumerate several neighbours with- 
in his horizon. 

The richest section of all Texas from an agricultural 

standpoint is the Black Waxy Belt, which has its centre 

at the northern metropolis of Dallas. Dallas is situated 

more than two hundred miles north and a little west of 

217 



218 Texas, the Marvellous 

Houston, with which city it is connected by several rail- 
roads. Here it is that cotton is supreme, and the term 
King Cotton is not a misnomer. The prosperity of the 
great community is determined each year by the yield 
and price of that commodity. If you should travel 
through here when cotton is ready for the pickers, your 
astonished gaze would fall upon heaping mounds of the 
"Texas snow" which does not melt on every hand. 

Cotton is a New World product. Long before the 
white man was aware that such a plant existed, the native 
brown man was apparelled in clothes made from cotton. 
The Spanish explorers discovered Montezuma's follow- 
ers wearing garments woven from the fibre of the cotton 
plant, which was cultivated by them. Cortez, in his re- 
ports to the crown of Spain, dwells upon the skill dis- 
played by the natives in the spinning of cotton and manu- 
facturing it into cloth. This proves conclusively that this 
plant was indigenous to America. 

When the bolls have unfolded, and the pure white 
floss of the bursted pods greets the eye everywhere, the 
cotton fields of the Black Waxy Belt are a beautiful sight. 
In places they spread out almost as far as the vision 
reaches. Old white-haired negroes, looking like "Old 
Black Joe," and the comical little pickaninnies toil side by 
side all day long in the burning sun. The ripened fields 
are picked over time and time again, as the pods unfold 
at irregular times, and it is not advisable to leave the 
opened pods exposed to the weather long after being 
ready for the pickers. The capacious wagon boxes are 
loaded with the white harvest and hauled to the "gin" ; 
there the seed is separated from the fibre, and the cotton 
is incased in bales of about five hundred pounds each. 
The bales are then loaded on cars and taken to the "com- 
press," where they are squeezed into less than half their 



First Hoeing of Cotton. 



The Black Waxy Belt 219 

original size by the application of tremendous pressure. 

The boll-weevil worm has inflicted great damage in the 
cotton belt of Texas, along with other cotton States — - 
the loss in a single year climbing up into the millions. 
Through scientific investigation and experiment, how- 
ever, the ravages of this costly pest have been greatly 
reduced in the last few years. One successful method 
has been the introduction of early maturing varieties of 
the cotton plant, together with other means of hastening 
the harvesting of the crop. 

The Houston and Texas Central is one of the oldest 
railroads in the State, and for quite a distance after leav- 
ing Houston traverses the region where many of the land 
grants of the early empresarios were located. For that 
reason it is one of the oldest centres of American occu- 
pation. The negro population is very large in many sec- 
tions, for these colonists brought slaves with them. Be- 
fore the war the slave population almost equalled the 
white in many places. To-day they will number a third 
outside of the large cities. The simple cabins of the 
Ethiopians dot the fields, and the ebony faces of the in- 
habitants enliven the landscape. At Prairie View there 
is a large educational institution for the negroes that is 
supported by the State. It is primarily intended as a 
training-school for negro teachers. 

About a third of the way toward Dallas the railroad 
intersects the old San Antonio Road, over which most 
of the early immigrants to Texas came. This road was 
the connecting link between the upper and lower settle- 
ments of the Spaniards. Indian hostilities prevented 
the spread of American settlements north of this high- 
way until after statehood. Most of these settlers estab- 
lished themselves as near as they could to this road for 
fear of the marauding Indians. At the opening of the 



220 Texas, the Marvellous 

Revolution there were settlements every five or ten miles 
from here to Nacogdoches. 

The San Antonio Road continued to be an important 
highway until long after the admission of Texas as a 
State. There was a continuous succession of teams and 
horsemen along the highway because it was the great 
artery of traffic between the United States and Texas, 
and the Mexican provinces as well. Caldwell and Bas- 
trop were both stations on the San Antonio Road between 
here and San Antonio. The north Hne of Brazos County 
also follows this old highway for some distance. Near 
it, on the Brazos, was established in 1S30 the old Mexi- 
can fort of Tenoxtitlan. This was done for the double 
purpose of protecting the frontier against Indians and 
of enforcing the laws of Mexico among the American 
settlers. A small town grew up, which was little more 
than a name after the Revolution, and its identity has 
since been lost in Texas geography. 

A recent historian positively asserts that the death of 
La Salle occurred near the site of Navasota. Not far 
distant from this city is the once noted town of Washing- 
ton on the Brazos, which was, until the Civil War, one 
of the political and business centres of Texas, as well as 
a seat of civilization and culture. The municipality was 
organized in 1835, and the municipality later became 
Washington County. The town of Washington was the 
first county seat, but that distinction has disappeared. It 
now dwells in the past. As the place where the Texas 
Declaration of Independence was promulgated, and as 
the one-time capital of the Republic, the old town of the 
Brazos merits more than casual notice. It acquired pres- 
tige as the leading market town of the upper Brazos, 
for steamboat navigation was then maintained on this 
river. 



The Black Waxy Belt 221 

In the forties and fifties Washington reached the zenith 
of her glory, with a population of at least fifteen hundred, 
and was one of the largest towns of the State. But the citi- 
zens haughtily refused a bonus to the Houston and Texas 
Central Railroad, then being projected, because they be- 
lieved it would interfere with the river traffic. One man, 
possessed of wisdom beyond his fellows, walked the 
streets and almost tearfully entreated the inhabitants to 
accede to the demand. But they were obdurate. In his 
resulting wrath, it is said that he cursed the town, and 
prayed that he might survive to see the day when the 
site of old Washington would be planted with cotton. 
The result was that the people vanished, Washington is 
still without a railroad, and another town is the county 
capital. The prayer of the outraged citizen has been 
almost realized. It is now a small town, with a single 
store to supply the wants of the neighbourhood. Old 
foundations, brick cisterns, and debris, now indicate the 
site of the town as it once stood. Nothing remains but 
shadowy memories, and a shaft of grey Texas granite, 
erected by the school children of the county in 1900, on 
which is this inscription : "Here a nation was bom." 

Near Corsicana was discovered and produced the first 
oil and natural gas of commercial volume in Texas. Up 
to this time the country had been purely agricultural. 
This was in 1896, several years before the Beaumont 
boom. It still remains an important producing point for 
petroleum. The oil boom started the town on the up 
grade, until to-day it is a prosperous little city and is 
the county seat of Navarro County. This county is in the 
richest agricultural district, for more than half the land 
is actually cultivated. Cotton is the principal crop, and 
far more land is devoted to the cultivation of this plant 
than all others together. It is not an old section of the 



222 Texas, the JMarvelloug 

country, for there were no settlements within it until after 
Texas was admitted to the Union. 

In the northern part of Texas, and a little east of the 
centre, are located the "Twin Cities" of Texas, which 
are the Minneapolis and the St. Paul of that State. 
There is considerable rivalry between these two munic- 
ipalities, and it is rather interesting, and frequently 
amusing, to listen to the citizen of one city express his 
opinion of its rival. 

"Fort Worth is the largest of our suburban towns; you 
really ought to see it," says the citizen of Dallas, speak- 
ing in a sort of disparaging way about the other city. 

"Dallas is nothing more than a big wholesale town," 
says the man who lives in Fort Worth. "There is little 
real manufacturing in Dallas, and it is manufacturing 
that makes solid city growth." 

The two cities are connected by a splendid interurban 
line, and at the most they are but thirty miles apart. 
If both cities should continue to increase, as the in- 
habitants of each one predict, and should grow toward 
each other, then it might be that at some future time the 
two cities will make one great Southwestern metropolis. 
As any rate, there are many who look forward to the 
day when this intervening distance will be a continuous 
succession of pretty and thriving villages, country clubs, 
homes, and outing resorts. This, however, is looking 
quite a ways into the future. 

At the time of the Texas Revolution this fertile country 
was the roving ground of Indians. When a white man, 
in 1841, erected a tiny hut on the banks of the Trinity 
River, occurred the first invasion of this primeval wil- 
derness by that race. The nearest court at that time was 
at Nacogdoches, two hundred miles away. Five years 
later the little settlement had increased to an even half 



The Black Waxy Belt 223 

dozen families. "Life in Dallas," says a contemporary 
writer, "in the early fifties moved on primitive lines. An 
old-fashioned hand mill, brought by one of the settlers in 
1852 to grind the com with, was in such demand that it 
was allotted to the applicants one day at a time. One 
sewing machine served the village for years." The first 
court house was a rough structure of cedar logs, with a 
puncheon floor and with split logs for seats. All the 
merchandise and supplies of every kind were hauled from 
Houston with ox-teams. When the roads were passable, 
it required about four weeks to make this trip. 

Dallas does not owe either its location or its develop- 
ment to any peculiar natural advantages. The rich soil 
of the Black Waxy Belt rendered a great distributing city 
necessary, and the enterprise of her citizens directed that 
development to Dallas. When the first railroads reached 
there in the early seventies the real improvements began, 
and people commenced to come in. The streets were 
thronged with freighting wagons ready to cart supplies to 
all parts of the north and west Texas. "A special police 
force was required to keep from congestion the immense 
concourse of wagons upon them," said a writer. The 
city was incorporated as a municipality in 1856. 

The city of Dallas impresses one as being a Northern 
city under a Southern sun. It is primarily a commercial 
city, and has the same air of strenuous business activity 
that one will find in almost any Northern business cen- 
tre. Like many cities, Dallas has developed a person- 
ality. Its characteristics may not be so marked as San 
Antonio or Quebec or Boston, but it does possess a dis- 
tinct individuality. Were I to compare it with any other 
city, it would be with Chicago. Money talks in Dallas. 
San Antonio is reminiscent of the Don, and even Houston 
is softer, more suave, and more gracious. Fort Worth 



224 Texas, the Marvellous 

is essentially Western. But Dallas is a Northern city 
beneath a Southern sky and with a Southern setting. The 
fact that many business men from the other side of Ma- 
son and Di^con's Line are at the head of the big busi- 
ness establishments here doubtless has had tremendous 
influence in the development of the Dallas character. 

Dallas is not primarily a manufacturing city. It is 
the home of the wholesaler, the distributor, and the 
retired man of wealth. You drive along the streets of 
Dallas and see a splendid house fit for a prince to live in. 

"Whose home is this?" you ask. 

"Oh, it is a rich rancher's," is the reply. "He bought 
land for a trifle, and sold it to farmers, — worth half a 
million, I reckon." 

You drive a little farther and another mansion meets 
yo«r gaze. 

"Who lives here?" you query. 

"Why, that is a cattleman from the Panhandle," your 
cicerone answers. "He owns about half a million acres 
out there and has so many cattle he is unable to count 
them." 

And so your quest continues. The Dallas citizen likes 
to talk of big things, great enterprises, wealthy men, lofty 
buildings, transcontinental railroads. As I said, money 
talks in Dallas, and its characteristics are those of Chi- 
cago, only in a lesser degree, as a matter of course. B"t 
Dallas is daunted by nothing. She has many skyscrapers, 
and her public buildings are built on a generous scale. 
The population has passed the hundred thousand mark, 
making Dallas the second city in the State, according 
to Government reports. It is a clean, attractive city in 
the business section, and even more so in the residential 
districts, for its residential parts are most creditable. 
The streets have been laid out with an eye to beauty 




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The Black Waxy Belt 225 

and comfort. The real Dallas is scarcely more than forty 
years of age. 

Dallas is located in the midst of one of the richest 
agricultural regions in the United States. There is prob- 
ably only one other American city that distributes more 
agricultural machinery than Dallas. The agricultural 
surroundings have aided in developing the Dallas State 
Fair as one of the great enterprises of the city. It is 
a great and valuable business institution, with a large 
surplus of money to its credit. Although called a State 
fair) it is purely a local enterprise, but it has been an 
exceedingly profitable venture. From half to three- 
quarters of a million people pass through the stiles each 
year, and it has been of incalculable advantage to the 
business interests of Dallas. A few years ago the stock- 
holders generously transferred its property to the city for 
fair grounds and park purposes. By the terms of the 
transfer the Fair Association retains the use of the 
grounds four weeks in the autumn. During the remain- 
der of the year the grounds are devoted to park and other 
public purposes. Many commodious buildings of per- 
manent and attractive architecture have been con- 
structed, all of which are the property of the city. The 
Coliseum is the largest auditorium in the city, and will 
seat seven thousand five hundred people. 

One-tenth of all the cotton of the world, and two- fifths 
of the cotton of Texas, is produced within one hundred 
miles of Dallas. The surrounding territory is indeed 
the cream of the State, for its soil is a rich black loam, 
and it receives enough rainfall to mature the crops. 
Scores of prosperous towns and thriving villages have 
grown up around it. A short distance north of Dallas 
the grain region commences, which projects up into and 
through Oklahoma. Southern Oklahoma may be called 



226 Texas, the Mairellous 

tributary territory. The many small towns located in 
all directions have been the means of developing Dallas 
as practically the only electric railroad centre that can 
be found in Texas. Interurban lines already extend to 
Corsicana and Waco on the south, Fort Worth on the 
west, and Denison on the north, with several others 
either under construction or projected. 

Dallas has made elaborate plans for the future, and 
she has the civic spirit to carry out such ambitious 
schemes. Competent architects have drawn up plans for 
parks and boulevards and a general city outline for future 
growth. Park sites have been secured within the cor- 
porate limits, which are easily accessible from the con- 
gested districts. All of these are being improved upon 
a practical plan, so that they are bound to become a 
source not only of pleasure but also of pride to the citi- 
zens. Playgrounds and various municipal recreations 
are generously provided. The spirit of the municipality 
is most commendable and worthy of emulation by some 
of our Eastern cities. 

A great concrete viaduct exceeding a mile in length has 
been constructed across the lowland through which flows 
the Trinity River, in order to connect Dallas with its 
suburb of Oak Cliff. On the north side there is another 
separate town, called Highland, which is exclusively resi- 
dential. 

In the northern part of Dallas there has been estab- 
lished the Southern Methodist University, a new educa- 
tional institution of the Methodist Episcopal Church, 
South. This institution, work on which was begun in 
191 1, promises to become one of the leading denomina- 
tional universities of the South. It occupies a site of 
almost one square mile of land. With only a few build- 
ings completed, the University was opened to students 



The Black Waxy Belt 227 

ki the fall of 191 5. It is intended eventually to occupy 
the field of a complete university. 

The most ambitious scheme of Dallas is that which 
aims to develop this city, which lies five hundred and 
fifty miles from the Gulf of Mexico by the nearest water- 
way, into a water port. You may laugh at the idea, as 
many visitors to this city do, but there is no question 
about the seriousness of the citizens of Dallas. They 
have succeeded in securing liberal appropriations from the 
National Government to develop the Trinity River into 
a waterway deep enough for barges carrying cotton and 
other bulk freight to navigate between Dallas and the 
Gulf. Government engineers have been at work con- 
structing locks on the upper reaches of the Trinity, and, 
unlike most similar projects, the work was begun near 
the source and not at the mouth of the stream. The de- 
sire of the Dallas inhabitants is to reduce the freight 
rate on cotton from that city to the Gulf. The water rate 
would not amount to more than one-sixth of the present 
railway charge, so it is claimed. 

It is very doubtful whether the Trinity will ever be 
employed extensively as a waterway, because of the great 
distance and the time necessary for the journey, al- 
though in earlier days the merchants occasionally used 
flat-boats to transport cargoes down the river to the Gulf. 
If this project succeeds in securing a railway differen- 
tial upon cotton, however, the purpose of the citizens of 
Dallas will have been accomplished. This would place 
Dallas on an equality with actual sea ports. By this 
scheme the promoters hope to divert much of the cotton 
which now goes to Houston. The future alone will re- 
veal how well-advised are the hopes of the citizens. 

Fort Worth is not an old city, as cities go in these 
United States, and yet it is the older by a decade or two 



228 Texas, the Marvellous 

of the twin cities in Northern Texas. At the close of 
the war with Mexico, General Winfield Scott despatched 
a troop of dragoons to North Texas to establish a post 
there for the purpose of protecting that sparsely settled 
country from the ravages of the Indians. These aborigi- 
nes were then numerous in that region, and they fre- 
quently made forays from what is now the Indian Ter- 
ritory. Major Arnold, who was in charge, selected what 
is now the site of Fort Worth as the most available point 
for this purpose. The post was at first called Camp 
Worth, in honour of Brigadier-General Worth, and was 
established on the sixth of June, 1849. ^ f^w months 
later the name was changed to Fort Worth, and only four 
years afterwards the post was abandoned as a military 
establishment, the troops being sent elsewhere. There 
was never a real fort at this point, according to modem 
interpretation of that term, and the only buildings there 
were the barracks for the soldiers, which were stationed 
in what is now the very heart of the city. 

It was but natural that the first settlement of any 
consequence in this Black Waxy Belt should germinate 
about the military post, because of the protection afforded 
by the presence of soldiers, if for no other reason. 
When the soldiers departed, however, there was only a 
meagre population scattered throughout the country. 
Barring a few supply trains there was as yet no trade 
of any magnitude that had begun to flow through this 
section of Texas ; neither were there any cattle trails, so 
that there was very little to attract permanent settlers at 
this time. There was only a straggling settlement on 
Trinity Bluffs, and there was no assurance that it would 
ever become of greater importance. It might experi- 
ence the same fate as many similar frontier settlements. 

The early town was grouped around the public square. 



The Black Waxy Belt 229 

and the old court house on the bluffs was the hub of in- 
terest and business activity; but this stage of develop- 
ment has long since been passed. The county of Tar- 
rant was created by the Legislature in December, 1849, 
and the county seat was at first located at Birdsville. 
Through judicious scheming the inhabitants of Fort 
Worth finally succeeded in having the location changed to 
their town, and it has remained there ever since. The 
citizens of Fort Worth were wild with joy, and it is re- 
lated that the official records were placed in a wagon, 
three fiddlers mounted on top, and the official seat thus 
transferred in triumph to the little village on the bluffs 
of the Trinity. Birdsville is now indicated by only a few 
weather-beaten buildings, which scarcely tell the story of 
its struggles to become the county metropolis. For some 
time after the withdrawal of the military post, hostile In- 
dians made occasional forays around and about Fort 
Worth. In fact, until after the Civil War, it was on the 
real Western frontier. Raids of hostile Indians occurred 
as late as 1870 in this vicinity. 

The real growth of Fort Worth began when the rails 
of the Texas and Pacific Railroad, after several years 
of financial tribulations, finally reached Fort Worth in 
1880, although another railroad had entered the city sev- 
eral years earlier. The succeeding boom brought with 
it a host of rough-and-ready characters among whom 
the six-shooters were conspicuous. It became a sort of 
clearing house between the regulated customs of the 
East and the free and untrammelled life of the West. 
Thus the railroad had brought its evils as well as its 
benefits. The cattlemen at once made Fort Worth their 
headquarters, and drew their supplies therefrom. The 
city developed into a great market for buffalo hides, 
tongues and meat. More than two hundred thousand 



230 Texas, the IVEarvellous 

buffalo hides were received there in a single season. 
When the warehouses were filled, the vacant ground was 
covered. Its population is now considerably less than 
that of Dallas, but it also has more undeveloped land 
to- the northwest, west, and southwest than has the 
rival city, and this land is rapidly being developed. Not 
long ago much of it was classed only as range land, and 
was worth two or three dollars an acre, while to-day it 
could scarcely be purchased for fifty dollars an acre 
A few years ago, when the Chicago packers were 
searching for a desirable location for the establishment 
of packing houses in the Southwest, they decided upon 
Fort Worth. Both the packers and the railroads secured 
liberal terms from the city, and they are now exerting 
every energy to develop this industry. The city now 
ranks as the second cattle market in the United States. 
The packing houses are located at one end of the city 
in a separate corporation, which is called Niles City. 
This municipality has its own mayor, chief of police, etc., 
but there are only a few inhabitants, just enough to allow 
it to become incorporated. An old frame building houses 
all the municipal officials. It does not take an expert to 
see that Fort Worth is more of a manufacturing town 
than its rival, for it can be seen in the large number of 
working men on every side. Furthermore, it is the only 
city in the State where a haze of smoke can be observed 
hanging over the city. The packing houses and stodc 
yards alone employ several thousand men. Separate from 
the stock yards is a great horse and mule market, which 
is likewise important in the world's trade. Many thou- 
sands of these animals went direct from these yards to 
the battlefields of Europe. Then there are oil refineries, 
railroad shops, and other industries that employ larg« 
numbers of men in Fort Worth. 



The Black Waxy Belt 231 

Although Fort Worth is typically Western, and con- 
tains a larger proportion of labourers than the other 
Texas cities, it must not be understood that the ethical 
side is neglected. The location is beautiful, for the surface 
of the country is delightfully rolling. Advantage has 
been taken of these natural circumstances in developing 
the city. Material development has naturally come first 
in such an industrial centre. But there are splendid 
schools and several educational institutions which are 
already opened. The largest of these is doubtless the 
Texas Christian College, which is under the auspices of 
that church. Then there is the Baptist Theological Semi- 
nary, and several other worthy schools and colleges. The 
Fort Worth of the future is destined to be a greater and 
even more prosperous city. 



CHAPTER XIV 

AROUND AND ABOUT THE CAPITAL 

The proximate cause leading to the selection of the 
site of Austin for the Republic's capital was a buffalo 
hunt indulged in by General Lamar, accompanied by 
an escort of rangers from a frontier fort which stood 
a few miles below the present city. Halting on the hill 
where now stands the magnificent capitol, and gazing 
across the valley covered with wild rye, he was fas- 
cinated with the outlook. When Lamar became Presi- 
dent shortly afterwards, he approved of the act of Con- 
gress, which provided that the location of the capital 
"should be selected at some point between the rivers 
Trinidad and Colorado," and above the San Antonio 
Road. He called the attention of the commissioners ap- 
pointed by him to this situation, and it is believed that 
his admiration for this locality had much to do with the 
report of the commissioners. 

That great central section of modern Texas was almost 
a terra incognita at the time of the Texas Revolution. 
The old San Antonio Road, which passed through Bas- 
trop and Caldwell, was practically the line of demarca- 
tion. At that time there was not a house between Austin 
and San Antonio. Before statehood a few settlements 
had arisen between those two cities. But settlers beyond 
there did not arrive until after annexation. The members 
of the Santa Fe Expedition of 1842 brought back prac- 
tically the only reliable information concerning a large 
232 



Around and About the Capital 233 

part of it. By the time of the Civil War, however, the 
white man had established his habitation out as far as 
Coleman and Brownwood, and the cattlemen had ven- 
tured to drive their herds out upon the luscious grasses 
for a considerable distance west of the capital. Some of 
the counties were not fully organized until after that 
great event, and other counties have been subdivided into 
smaller divisions. 

A diminutive settlement, consisting of a few cabins, 
was already here when the new capital was established, 
and was called Waterloo. The act of Congress had 
provided that the capital should be called "The City of 
Austin," a recognition of the exalted character and pa- 
triotic service of Stephen F. Austin. Henceforth Water- 
loo disappeared from the map. Austin has one of the 
pleasantest and most inviting sites of any of the cities 
of Texas. The county was afterwards named Travis 
to commemorate the heroism of the commander of the 
Alamo garrison. 

The selection of Austin showed a farsightedness on 
the part of the commissioners, and of President Lamar 
as well. It was almost at the extreme limit of settle- 
ment, and was near the theatre of Indian depredations. 
So exposed was Austin to Indian attacks that the mem- 
bers of the Government were sometimes obliged to take 
their turn at standing guard. The commissioners laid 
out the town on the bank of the Colorado River. About 
a dozen square miles of land were included in the pur- 
chase by the commissioners. The price was a little less 
than three dollars per acre, which probably meant a good 
profit to the original owners for wild land on the fron- 
tier sandwiched between the white settlements and Indian 
domain. 

After choosing the ground for the capital, the commis- 



234 Texas, the Marvellous 

sioners surveyed one square mile, laying it off in blocks 
and lots, and designated the locations for the various 
public buildings. Their report was rendered to Congress 
in April, 1839, and, so rapidly was the work hastened, 
that by October houses for the accommodation of most 
of the governmental departments had been completed. 
The town enlarged slowly because of its exposure to 
Indian forays. A few hundred was the maximum of its 
population during the days of the Republic. The early 
houses were mostly constructed of hewed logs, gen- 
erally double houses with a passage between. The public 
buildings were covered with boards split by hand. 

The natural advantages of Austin have always com- 
mended the wisdom of its selection. Although the ad- 
ministrative offices were removed for a while and Con- 
gress convened elsewhere, it has remained the practical 
seat of government ever since the choice fell upon it. 
President Lamar removed his residence to Austin within 
the same year that the capital was established there. An 
ordinary double log house at the intersection of Congress 
and Eighth Streets became his office, as well as that of 
Presidents Houston and Jones and the governors of 
Texas for the ten years succeeding its admission as a 
State. Similar log houses housed the other departments 
of the Republic. All of these have now disappeared. 
The residence of the President was a little more preten- 
tious, being two stories in height. The first capitol was 
a large one-story frame building. As late as 1846, the 
year of the transfer of government, this building was 
encompassed by a stockade fort for protection against 
the Indians, whose raids were still not infrequent. A 
few years later a traveller wrote of Austin : "There is a 
remarkable number of drinking and gambling shops, but 
not one bookstore." 



Around and About the Capital 235 

Sam Houston, after the close of his first presidential 
terra, was elected to the Congress, and was obliged to 
attend the sessions of that body at Austin. In a private 
letter, dated December loth, 1839, recently published for 
the first time, he expressed his contempt for the new 
capital as follows: "This is the most tm fortunate site 
upon earth for the seat of government. Bad water, cold 
region— indifferent and sparse timber. It is removed 
outside the settlement and not a house between this and 
Santa Fe. Our eating is very plain, and no society to 
enjoy in this place, for I do not visit 'court' (President 
Lamar). It is said to be rather fine — so it should be 
from what appears on our financial records. The ex- 
penses of this year are appalling to those who do not 
wish to be buried by taxation. Without some change 
in our affairs, the Government must cease, because the 
situation of the people is not such as will enable them 
to pay an exorbitant contribution. ... I might have 
been happy at home had I known the full extent of 
Lamar's stupidity." 

When Sam Houston again became President, he 
objected to this site, because it was exposed to attack 
from the Mexicans, who had become troublesome, but 
remained there until San Antonio was actually captured. 
Indian raids and massacres occurred within what is now 
the corporation limits. It is little wonder that Austin did 
not flourish. A special session of Congress was called 
at the city of Houston by President Houston, in 1842. 
This action aroused intense indignation among the peo- 
ple of Austin, who would not surrender the government 
archives. Houston sent special messengers for these 
necessary documents, but the citizens shaved the manes 
and tails of their horses and drove them off in contumely 
and disgrace. 



236 Texas, the Marvellous 

On the 20th day of December, 1842, Houston des- 
patched a company of armed men with wagons to recover 
the archives. While these men were loading the boxes 
on wagons, a six-pound cannon, loaded with grape, was 
trained upon the building. This was touched off by a 
woman, but fortunately no one was injured. Houston's 
men succeeded in securing three wagon-loads of books 
and papers, and then started in haste for Houston. But 
the cannon-shot had aroused the citizens. The infuriated 
Austonians followed, and about eighteen miles from 
Austin overtook the "thieves." They forcibly took the 
documents, which were returned to Austin. And there 
they have remained to this day. The archives were 
sealed up in tin boxes, and jealously guarded by the citi- 
zens for several months in an old log stock-house. Some 
of them were afterwards buried in the ground as a pre- 
caution against future raids either by Mexicans or the 
Government. 

Thus did the sturdy pioneers of Austin boldly and 
defiantly resist the head of the Republic and retain the 
archives. Houston complained to Congress about the 
insubordination and justified his action, but nothing 
was ever done by that body in the matter. In 1842, 
Austin became the permanent capital of the Republic of 
Texas. Upon the admission of Texas as a State of the 
Union, Austin was retained by a vote of the people as 
the seat of government. It was still a sparsely settled 
region, and remained a hunter's paradise almost until 
the outbreak of the Civil War. 

Austin is almost in the centre of the State from north 
to south, and for that reason it is well situated to be 
the seat of government. Many Mexicans dwell there, but 
it is near the northern demarcation line of that race. 
Beyond that there are few Mexicans, except track la- 



Briclge^ovfr-jthe, Colorado River, Justin. 



Around and About the Capital 237 

bourers on the railroads. Austin has a dehghtful loca- 
tion about forty feet or more above the Colorado River, 
which is here quite an imposing stream. It is crossed 
by a long and imposing concrete bridge, which connects 
the two sections of the town. The main street, called 
Congress, leading from the bridge to the capitol, is a 
broad and impressive thoroughfare. A twenty or thirty 
story building would not be out of place, and would not 
interfere with either light or ventilation. If some of our 
congested Eastern cities had such an avenue for their 
main artery, it would be an asset worth many millions of 
dollars. Unfortunately, those early pioneers who laid 
out our Eastern cities, when land could be purchased for 
almost nothing, did not have a vision of the possibilities 
of the future. The Texas pioneers were wiser. 

As the city of Austin is at present, there is no danger 
of congestion. The entire population could be accommo- 
dated on Congress Street. Although there is quite a 
considerable wholesale business carried on, Austin has 
always retained the essential character of a capital city, 
the seat of institutions rather than of business and in- 
dustry. It has long been noted for its churches and its 
schools. It is a city of approximately thirty thousand 
people at the present time. 

Austin possesses one of the most magnificent capitol 
buildings in our country. Texas is the only State that 
can boast of a three-million-acre capitol. A niamber of 
years ago the State possessed much land but little money, 
and it felt a great big desire for and need of a new 
capitol building. Negotiations were entered upon with 
a syndicate which was willing to construct a building, 
and accept the only commodity the State had to offer in 
payment — ^namely, land. The capitol cost approximately 
three and a half million of dollars, and the syndicate re- 



238 Texas, the Marvellous 

ceived a trifle over three million acres of land. The build- 
ing itself, exclusive of porticoes, is more than five hundred 
feet in length. The State acquired a good building, and 
the syndicate received land equal to a principality. This 
land was situated in the counties of the Panhandle and 
Llano Estacado bordering on New Mexico. The act 
of the Legislature making this appropriation was en- 
acted in 1879, long before there had been any develop- 
ment in this section. It was then considered simply as 
arid land, and the State believed it had made a good 
bargain. The syndicate initiated work, however, to de- 
velop its land, and now its value is several times what 
it cost. The members of the syndicate made millions of 
money, but it vras a legitimate profit. No one appeared 
to foresee the development that has transformed the 
Panhandle. 

The great dome of the capitol dominates the horizon 
for several miles before the train reaches Austin, for 
the imposing red sandstone building stands slightly above 
the rest of the city. Looking at it from the opposite end 
of Congress Street, it gives very much the same effect 
as Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington from the Treas- 
ury. The dome is surmounted by a statue of the blind 
goddess of Justice upholding the lone star of Texas more 
than three hundred feet above the level of Capitol Hill. 
It is built of Texas material. The stone was secured 
from what is termed a mountain of granite near Marble 
Falls, about forty or fifty miles northwest of the capital. 
At this place an almost unlimited amount of this red 
sandstone is available, and it is a splendid material for 
building. 

The grounds about the capitol are dotted with trees 
and shrubbery, which makes an artistic setting. There 
are a number of monuments, including one to the Texas 



Around atid About the Capital 239 

heroes who sacrificed their hves in the massacre of the 
Alamo. Among the most striking features are two 
small cannon, at the principal entrance, one on either 
side. The coat of arms of Texas, with the single star 
prominent, ornaments each one. The following inscrip- 
tion also appears: "This gun was used in the Texas 
Revolution and in the Civil War." It is not strange 
that these two small pieces, which would be of abso- 
lutely no efficiency to-day, are treasured by the people of 
Texas. By the side of a forty-two centimetre gun of 
the Teutons they would be mere pygmies. The whole 
gim could be put inside such a monster. 

The most imposing room in the capitol is the House of 
Representatives. It is a splendid assembling room for 
this body, for it is capacious and inviting, with a gallery 
encircling three sides, and is lighted both from a skylight 
above and side windows. The Senate is not so large a 
room, for that body is much less numerous. In these two 
rooms, and the entrance corridors, is assembled a gal- 
lery of Texas history on canvas. The famous picture 
of the "Surrender of Santa Anna" at San Jacinto is in the 
corridor. It depictures General Houston reclining on a 
blanket, with his foot bandaged, and gesticulating with 
his hand. "Deaf" Smith, in the uniform of a frontier 
scout and with a long rifle over his arm, holds one hand 
to his ear while listening to what is being said. The 
surgeon, who has just been dressing Houston's foot, 
has not relinquished his instruments. In the group are 
many of the historic characters of the Revolution. Santa 
Anna is pleading with head bared before his captor. In 
the Senate is hung a painting of the "Battle of San Ja- 
cinto" by McArdle. Some of the flags borne by the Tex- 
ans bear the inscription "Liberty or Death." These were 
the words of Travis. It is a picture of frightful carnage. 



240 Texas, the Marvellous 

There is another painting here of the "Siege of the Ala- 
mo." The Texas flags in this picture all have "1824" on 
them, which refers to the Convention and Constitution 
of that year. 

I was interested in studying the face of Lorenzo de 
Zavala, Vice-President of Texas under the Provisional 
Government. He migrated to that new country from 
Mexico, because he would not submit to the tyranny of 
Santa Anna after that general had proclaimed himself 
dictator. He had been a member of the Cortez of Spain, 
and both houses of the Mexican Congress, having served 
as presiding officer of each, and governor of one of the 
Mexican States before coming to Texas. He resigned 
the office of Minister to France in order to establish a 
new home in Texas, where he had purchased lands. The 
Texans welcomed with joy the arrival of this distin- 
guished representative of Mexican republicanism, and 
his advice was eagerly sought. It was only a few months 
after his incoming that the Consultation was called, and 
Zavala was commissioned a delegate from Harris 
county. He only survived a year longer — long enough, 
however, to see Santa Anna humiliated and Texas freed. 
Although a Mexican, this true friend of liberty was 
highly esteemed by the Texas leaders for his integrity, 
sagacity and courage. He entered heartily into the strug- 
gle for independence, and his descendants still dwell in 
the State. 

There is exhibited a portrait of Alphonzo Steele, the 
last survivor of the Battle of San Jacinto, who was 
ninety-two years of age at the time the picture was made. 
A painting of Sam Houston shows him as he looked 
when an exile among the Cherokee Indians. The leading 
canvas in the House of Representatives is the Settlement 
of Austin's Colony. In it is a portraiture of Stephen F. 



Around and About the Capital 241 

Austin, accoutred with rifle, hatchet, knife, and powder 
flask, all of them indispensable friends of the frontiers- 
man. Sam Houston is represented in another portrait 
seated in the chair of office and enveloped in a robe 
which resembles a blanket. This was only one of the 
many eccentric costumes worn by that hero. 

Of the monuments around the capitol, the one that im- 
pressed me most is that erected to the memory of the 
men who fell in the Alamo. The names of those heroes 
are arranged in alphabetical order. One reads these 
patronymics reverentially for the lesson they offer of 
sublime self-sacrifice and of lives offered up willingly for 
their adopted country. The most striking memorial is 
dedicated to the Confederate soldiers in the War of the 
Rebellion. It reveals the spirit that animated the sol- 
diers who wore the grey. It bears this inscription: 
"Died for State rights guaranteed under the Constitution. 
The people of the South, animated by the spirit of 1776, 
to preserve their rights, withdrew from the Federal com- 
pact in 1861. The North resorted to coercion. The 
South, against overwhelming numbers and resources, 
fought imtil exhausted. During the war, there were 
twenty-two hundred and fifty-seven engagements; in 
eighteen hundred and eighty-two of these, at least one 
regiment took part. Number of men enlisted : Confed- 
erate armies, 600,000; Federal armies, 2,857,132. Losses 
from all causes: Confederate, 437,000; Federal, 485,- 
216. 

"Erected A. D. 1901, by surviving comrades." 
The State of Texas has provided a home for her Con- 
federate veterans in Austin, which is said to be the best- 
conducted home anywhere in the South. It is an insti- 
tution to which the Austonians point with pride. It 
also has more inmates than any similar institution in the 



242 Texas, the Marvellous 

Southern States. The same feeling of sadness overcame 
me when I visited this Home, as there has in visiting 
the similar institutions in the North. Most of the vet- 
erans were more or less infirm, and they are simply await- 
ing the final call to the beyond. The veterans welcomed 
me and conducted me through the various buildings. It 
cannot compare with the homes for the soldiers of the 
blue in the North. The difference is that the latter have 
the resources of the National Government back of them, 
while the former depends solely upon the State. It is in- 
deed commendable that Texas and the other States of 
the South should care for these men who fought so 
valiantly for what they believed was right. The average 
peii-o'on granted to her veterans by Texas is only ninety 
dollars a year. A few States pay in excess of this sum, 
but there are more which allow less. Even at that sum 
the annual appropriations for pensions and the support 
of this home approach a million dollars. The average 
number of soldiers quartered in the Home exceeds three 
himdred, and they are very well cared for. 

The greatest public institution in Austin is the Uni- 
versity of Texas. It ranks among the leading universities 
of the country. Its most grievous trouble has been grow- 
ing pains, for the attendance has completely outstripped 
its equipment. In 1905 there were only fifteen hundred 
students ; ten years later the number had much more than 
doubled. New buildings have not kept apace, and, as a 
result, temporary structures, which the Texans them- 
selves term "wooden shacks," dot the campus to accom- 
modate certain departments. The site is a splendid one, 
with a magnificent view from and toward the capitol. 
There is an inhibition in the Constitution of Texas for- 
bidding the appropriation of any money for new build- 
ings, and this has handicapped the authorities. The in- 



University of Texas, Justin. 



Around and About the Capital 243 

come from the permanent funds has not been suf- 
ficient to meet the needs of rapid growth. But the 
work of turning out educated young men and women 
goes on, and the constant accretions in attendance 
speak well for the aspirations of the youth of this great 
State. 

A short distance out from Austin is a dam on the Colo- 
rado River, which furnishes the water supply of the capi- 
tal, and power for the electric plant as well. A number 
of years ago a lofty dam was constructed on this same 
site, which formed a body of water called Lake Mc- 
Donald. It was destroyed during a flood on the 7th of 
April, 1900. The present dam, which is almost eleven 
hundred feet long and sixty-five feet high, was completed 
in the spring of 191 5. The impeded water backs up be- 
tween the low hills, which encompass the river, and has 
formed a lake twenty- four miles long. This new body of 
water has been christened Lake Austin, and will be de- 
veloped into a beautiful inland pleasure resort. The Colo- 
rado River is a clear stream, and the water in the lake is 
as pure and sparkling as in any of our great lakes. Many 
private laimches and pleasure boats sail over the bosom 
of this new lake. In this way are the people of Austin, 
and other cities as well, making up for the lack of natural 
lakes as pleasure resorts. The cliffs of the river become 
higher and grander the farther up one goes. Between 
the dam and the city is a charming stretch of rocky 
cliff, which has been named Deep Eddy. 

German settlers have had an important influence in the 
settlement of Central Texas. In fact the Germanic ele- 
ment in Texas has been very influential in many sections. 
To these immigrants is due the foimding and growth 
of a number of splendid towns. Even in San Antonio 
for a long period the Germans were the largest national 



244 Texas, the Marvellous 

group, excepting the Mexicans themselves. A dozen 
years after the admission of Texas as a State, the number 
of Germans in a few counties of what is now termed 
Central Texas, numbered as many as twenty-five thou- 
sand. 

The general wave of German immigration to Texas 
began about 1848 at the climax to the revolutionary trou- 
bles in the German states. The trend toward Texas, how- 
ever, had been initiated a little earlier. A ntmiber of 
German nobles had interested themselves in directing the 
immigration of German people to Texas, and this or- 
ganization became known as the "Mainzer Adelsverein." 
It was one of the many schemes evolved about that time 
as a result of the agitation for social amelioration, and 
the diminution of pauperism. Because of its isolation, 
and the possible opening of a new source of wealth and 
power, Texas appealed to the nobility. A German de- 
pendency or new Teutonic nation might result, so they 
reasoned. 

Prince Carl Solms-Braunfels, the general agent for 
this association, came to Texas in 1844 to select the 
land for the colonists, and prepare the way for the im- 
migrants to follow. To each immigrant subscribing one 
hundred and twenty dollars, a free passage and forty 
acres of land was assured. The association obligated 
itself to provide log cabins, stock, and tools at fair prices, 
and to construct at its expense the public buildings and 
roads for the settlements. The first ship docked in the 
same year at Matagorda Bay, and from there the im- 
migrants journeyed overland to the place selected for 
them by Prince Solms on the Coman River. The land 
first chosen was too remote from the other settlements, so 
that they finally purchased a more promising site between 
Austin and San Antonio. There they laid out a new city 



Around and About the Capital 245 

to which the leader gave the name of New Braunfels, 
after his own home. On the hill overlooking the town 
a large block-house was erected, to which was given the 
name of "Sophienburg," and for the protection of the 
colonists a sort of palisade fort was built, which they 
called Zinkenburg. 

This colony at New Braunfels survived, and was re- 
inforced from time to time by other German immigrants, 
numbering in all several thousand. The misfortunes and 
hardships endured by the early German colonists at New 
Braunfels and the other settlements were indeed numer- 
ous, for they were unused to the primitiveness of the 
wilderness. They had not the remotest idea of the toil 
and hardship of settling in a new country. Many of them 
were swindled by speculators and adventurers. Numbers 
of them perished from the exposure and hardships ; oth- 
ers wandered away to other settlements. Such was the 
unhappy inception of New Braunfels. Nevertheless the 
soil and climate were good, and things soon meliorated. 
The settlement remained, and it has always retained its 
characteristics as a German town. The descendants of 
this German stock and later immigrants still prepon- 
derate in New Braunfels, and the county of which it is 
the capital. Another German settlement, called Fred- 
ericksburg, was founded shortly afterwards, almost di- 
rectly west of Austin and about equi-distant from that 
city. 

One of the most important cities of Central Texas is 
Waco, which is named after the tribe of Indians of the 
same name which had its headquarters near where the 
present city now stands. On the early maps of Texas the 
only place indicated in this section of the State was Waco 
Village, which had for years been a permanent rendez- 
vous of the Waco and affiliated Indian tribes. 



246 Texas, the Marvellous 

The late George Wilkins Kendall, in his Santa Fe 
Expedition, gives a picture of a Waco village which that 
party found on the Trinity River : "In a large bend of 
the stream the village viras situated, and all around were 
the com fields and pumpkin and melon patches of the in- 
habitants. Although the bend must have been five or six 
miles in length, by nearly two in breadth in the wider 
parts, every portion of it appeared to be in culti- 
vation ; and the land was extremely fertile. The purlieus 
of the village appeared to be kept clean. The wigwams, 
or houses rather, for they deserve that name, were built 
in rows and had an air of neatness and regularity about 
them, such as I had never before observed in an Indian 
village. They were of conical shape, some twenty-five 
feet in height, and of about the same diameter on the 
floor ; the materials used in their construction being poles, 
buflFalo hides and rushes. The poles were stuck in the 
ground, and after running up perpendicularly some ten 
feet, were bent over so as to converge to a point at the 
top, thus giving a regular dome-like roof to carry ofif the 
rains. Over these, buffalo hides in some instances were 
made fast, and these again were covered with long rushes 
— thus making thatched cottages impervious to dust and 
rain. 

"Attached to each residence, and immediately in the 
rear was another building of smaller dimensions, the 
lower part of which was evidently used for a corn-crib 
and store house. In these buildings we found a quan- 
tity of com and pumpkins, besides finely-cured venison, 
antelope and buffalo meat. Above the corn-crib was a 
species of balcony." Mr. Kendall adds : "I confess that 
I saw evidence of a more elevated kind of humanity than 
I had supposed was to be found anywhere cimong the 
original Americans," 



Around and About the Capital 247 

Waco is situated on the Brazos River, along which 
many of the early settlements in Texas were located. 
As these settlements pushed north, they were exposed 
to Indian hostilities which resulted in fearful loss of 
life and property throughout the existence of the Re- 
public and even later. Remains of Indian houses, burial 
grounds, and fortifications are said to have been trace- 
able in Waco as late as 1872. It was only after Texas 
entered the Union that adequate protection was afforded, 
so that settlements might be made in this neighbourhood. 
There were practically no settlers in what is now Mc- 
Lennan County, of which Waco is the county seat, until 
statehood. Rangers were then despatched into the coun- 
try and, in 1846, the first permanent settlement was made 
here by a family named McLennan, from whom the 
county was afterwards named. 

This section of Texas was in the slave belt, and ante- 
cedent to the war there were in some places almost as 
many negroes as whites. The rich soil was easily culti- 
vated, and by the aid of the slave labour development 
was rapid, so that it soon became one of the rich cotton 
centres. Waco had at that time already become an im- 
portant inland city, but its real progress did not begin 
until railroads reached it. Lumber for building before 
that time had to be transported from Eastern Texas, 
more than one hundred miles distant, on slow trains 
propelled by oxen. To-day Waco is one of the leading 
cities of the second class in Texas. A number of years 
ago it became known as the Geyser City, because of the 
number of artesian wells of hot mineral water which were 
discovered within the corporate limits. These wells are 
utilized to-day to supply a large part of the city's water. 
It has also been denominated the Athens of Texas, be- 
cause of educational institutions located within its limits. 



248 Texas, the Marvellous 

It is the seat of the principal Baptist college of the South, 
and there are a number of other educational institutions 
located within its limits. 

In the early days the small steamboats then in use 
transported a large part of the traffic up and down the 
Brazos River. As the size of vessels increased, however, 
they were not able to utilize the shallow waters of this 
river, and traffic by water diminished. The citizens of 
Waco, however, like those of Dallas, have been very 
energetic in endeavouring to attract goverrunent aid in 
deepening the waters of this river so as to make it once 
more a medium of navigation. The National Govern- 
ment has made a number of appropriations for im- 
proving this river and the construction of dams 
and locks sufficient to furnish navigation for vessels 
of light draught. The purpose is, of course, to 
bring freight rates down on the basis of water trans- 
portation. 

The territory bordering on the Brazos below Waco 
was originally known as the "District of Viesca." It was 
important enough to be represented in the Convention of 
1832. The capital of the "municipality of Viesca," and 
the principal seat of the settlement, was at the "falls of 
the Brazos," in what is now known as Falls County. 
This was all in what was then designated as the Nash- 
ville Colony, one of the early empresario grants. Two 
hundred families were colonized on this grant in 1830, 
and others arrived later. The land lay north of the San 
Antonio Road, lying between the Navasota River and 
the ridge dividing the waters of the Colorado and the 
Brazos. In this general way were boundary lines fixed 
in those days, and it is not surprising that much confusion 
resulted. Just prior to the Revolution it was decreed 
that the "town at the falls of the Brazos River in the 



Around and About the Capital 249 

Nashville Colony, heretofore known by the name of 
Viesca," should be changed to Milam, and this was done. 
There is a small village, however, on this site of the 
old capital town, which still preserves the name of 
iViesca in the geography of Texas. 



CHAPTER XV 

THE PANHANDLE AND THE STAKED PLAIN 

Way out in Northwestern Texas, in the section desig- 
nated as the Panhandle, we find a horizontal country 
with the sky pressing down sharply and evenly on every 
side. When twilight descends over the sombre flatness 
of the landscape, it is grey and vast with the awesome 
sweep of the sea. To appreciate these prairies fully one 
should contemplate them in the spring when the sun has 
wheedled the freshly moistened soil into bloom. Each 
day brings out some new blossom until the whole face 
of the country becomes radiant with colour and delicious 
with fragrance. The marvellous beauty of spring out 
here on the prairie has never been and never will be fully 
described. It is indescribable. A few days suffice to 
transform the whole face of nature. The dreary aspect 
of the open country changes at once to a vivid green, and 
the cheering effect must be seen to be appreciated. The 
names of many of the blossoms are unknown to me, but 
there are occasions when it is far more interesting simply 
to behold and enjoy the beauties of nature than to attempt 
to analyze each plant and place it in its proper grouping. 

A writer of some years ago, in a rather picturesque 
manner, symbolized the Panhandle as a land of ranches, 
rascals, rattlesnakes, and remittance men. The descrip- 
tion was not inapt for that period; but it has changed 
wonderfully in this twentieth century. It is still, how- 
ever, a region of bitter winds, prairie-dog holes, and 
little rain. The picturesque prairie-dogs, gophers, and 
250 



The Panhandle and the Staked Plain 251 

other rodents, as well as the jack-rabbits, are doubtless 
a much greater evil than in former days. The wolves, 
lynxes, and coyotes were nature's regulators. When the 
white men poisoned or decimated these animals in some 
other way, the jack-rabbit, gopher and prairie-dog rose 
instantly to power. As a consequence, literally millions 
of these astonishingly prolific animals soon took posses- 
sion of the range. The prairie-dogs not only devoured 
the grass, but they likewise dug up the very earth, leaving 
huge mounds of almost barren sand, often acres in extent. 
The rabbits became so troublesome that large parties of 
men were organized to round them up and exterminate 
them in great numbers 

It has been estimated that five jack-rabbits will eat 
as much grass as one sheep, and twenty prairie-dogs will 
devour and spoil more. There are regions up here where 
the prairie-dog villages number a population of from 
eight to ten thousand to the square mile. The prairie- 
dogs, so it is said, abandon their underground homes 
each autumn, turning them over to the newly-grown 
children. This is very thoughtful of papa and mamma. 
But the parents immediately excavate a new domicile for 
their own occupation — and this shows an absolute lack 
of consideration for the landlord. Poison squads are 
now employed by the big ranchmen to depopulate the 
prairie-dog towns. 

Even in the days before American settlements, these 
prairie-dog villages were common enough and immense 
in area. G. W. Kendall, in his Texan Santa Fe Expedi- 
tion, writes as follows : 

"The first town we visited was much the largest seen 
on the entire route, being some two or three miles in 
length by nearly a mile in width at the widest part. In 
the vicinity were smaller villages — suburbs of the larger 



252 Texas, the Marvellous 

town, to all appearances. After spending some three 
hours in the very heart of the settlements, and until not 
an inhabitant could be seen in any direction, we re-sad- 
dled our horses and set off in search of the command. 
Thus ended my first visit to one of the numerous prairie- 
dog commonwealths of the Far West. 

"If a person is fortimate enough to gain the imme- 
diate vicinity of one of their villages unobserved — a very 
difficult matter, for their sentinels are always on the 
alert — he will discover the inhabitants gambolling, frisk- 
ing, and running about tlie well-trodden paths, occasion- 
ally stopping a moment as if to exchange a word with a 
neighbour, and then hurrying back to their own lodges. 
Should he chance to discover some quiet citizen, sitting 
gravely at his doorway, he has but to watch him for a 
short time ere he will notice some eccentricity of conduct. 
His manner of entering his hole will remind the specta- 
tor of the antics of Pantaloon in a pantomime; for, in- 
stead of walking quietly in, he does it with an eccentric 
bound and half somerset, his hind feet knocking together 
as he pitches into the darkness below; and before the 
aforesaid spectator has yet fairly recovered from the half 
laugh caused by the drollery of the movement, he will 
see the dog slowly thrust his head from his burrow, and 
with a pert and impudent expression of countenance peer 
cunningly about, as if to ascertain the effect his recent 
antic had caused." 

The Panhandle reminds me vividly of the endless pam- 
pas of Argentina, the only dissimilar feature being the 
forests of mesquite which cover the prairie in many 
parts, for the Argentine pampas are absolutely treeless 
in their natural state. The land reaches out in every 
direction as far as the vision extends, with scarcely an 
observable deviation in the elevation ; and one knows that 



The Panhandle and the Staked Plain 253 

beyond this meeting-place of earth and sky the same un- 
ending monotony continues. It can best be characterized 
as an ocean of land spreading out like an unruffled sea 
from horizon to horizon. There is a fascination about 
the very vastness of these plains. 

These vast stretches of level land may produce a cer- 
tain sense of irritation upon one newly arrived in the 
Panhandle. He may ride for league upon league on his 
horse, or travel hour after hour by train, awaiting that 
change of scenery which his experience leads him to be- 
lieve must inevitably occur. And yet there is a fascina- 
tion about the very vastness of these prairies — in these 
leagues upon leagues of rich soil which here hold them- 
selves in readiness to receive the seed from the hand of 
the farmer. The scene superinduces retrospection also. 
In imagination one can behold countless numbers of 
the shaggy buffaloes feeding here while migrating to or 
from their northern pastures. The herds were at one 
time so vast that the undulations of their moving bodies 
were like the waves of a choppy sea. 

Here in the Panhandle, a territory almost as large as 
Pennsylvania, there is, in the words of the late Joaquin 
Miller: 

"Room! Room to turn round in, to breathe and be free. 
To grow to be giant, to sail as at sea 
With the speed of the wind on a steed with his mane 
To the wind, without pathway or route or a rein. 
Room! Room to be free where the wMte-bordered sea 
Blows a kiss to a brother as boundless as he, 
Where the builalo come like a cloud on the plain, 
Pouring on like the tide of a storm-driven main. 
And the lodge of the hunter to friend or to foe 
Offers rest; and unquestioned you come or you go." 

Sometimes there would come, with the suddenness of 
a volcanic eruption, one of those terrible prairie fires, 



254 Texas, the Marvellous 

which terrified man and beast alike. A rumble as of dis- 
tant thunder might be the first warning. All knew there 
was not a moment to spare. Spurred on by the impetuous 
winds of a "norther," which sometimes sweeps across 
these prairies in uncontrollable fury, the crackling flames 
would travel faster over the parched sward than the legs 
of animals could carry them. All animosity and all 
hatred of one animal for another or toward the human 
was forgotten. All realized that safety rested only in 
flight, and joined in one frenzied rush away from the 
onrushing fiery flood. None paused for another; the 
laggard and the feeble were overwhelmed and trampled 
beneath a thousand callous hoofs. Mingled together 
were — > 



"The howling of beasts and a sound as of thunder — 
Beasts burning and blind and forced onward and over. 

Till they died with a wild and a desolate moan, 
As a sea heart-broken on the hard brown stone — " 



It was during the decade of the seventies that the 
Indians and bufifalo made their last stand against the on- 
ward march of civilization. Organized bands of buffalo 
hunters roamed these plains chiefly for the sake of the 
profit derived from the hides of the slain animals. The 
centre of this trade was old Fort Griffin, and a small army 
of hunters rendezvoused there. Thither they brought 
their wagons piled high with the bales of hides, and at 
the fort they purchased supplies of food and ammimi- 
tion for the next trip into the buffalo country. It was 
about the "wildest and woolliest" place in Texas. Pro- 
fessional gamblers and whiskey sellers mingled with cat- 
tlemen, soldiers and skin-hunters. Its fame and even 
existence were transitory. It is now scarcely recognized 



The Panhandle and the Staked Plain 255 

as a place in Texas geography. Here is a description of 
Fort Griffin in 1877: 

"The post, on a hill a quarter of a mile south, is al- 
most depopulated, one company of negro soldiers keep- 
ing garrison. F. E. Conrad's storerooms, near the post, 
are the most extensive establishment in the place. There 
hunters procure supplies and deliver most of their hides. 
To give an idea of the immensity of his business, imagine 
a huge, rambling house, of several different rooms, 
crowded with merchandise ; with forty or fifty wagons to 
be loaded, and perhaps one hundred hunters purchasing 
supplies. . . . This is a frontier town, with all the usual 
characteristics, but is orderly. . . . The picket houses 
are giving way to rock and shingle-roofed frame build- 
ings, the lumber being hauled from Fort Worth. The 
buffalo hide industry has reached large proportions, two 
hundred thousand having been received here last season. 
... It is a gay and festive place ; night is turned into 
day; the dance and flowing bowl are indulged in freely, 
while hilarity and glee range supreme from eve until 
morning hours. Lager beer is twenty-five cents a glass." 

The Panhandle is mostly tableland from thirty-five 
hundred to four thousand feet above sea level. In area 
it will equal Ohio. There are whole counties where there 
is not a river, or a creek, or a watercourse of any kind. 
There are sometimes depressions into which the surplus 
rainfall drains, and some of the basins, or saucers, retain 
water the greater part of the year. In other sections, 
water is very near the surface, so that sufficient water 
can be obtained for stock and even for irrigation on quite 
an extensive scale by means of power pumps. Where 
irrigation has been employed some remarkable crops have 
been produced. 

In some places there are depressions which furnish the 



256 Texas, the Marvellous 

winter range for cattle, giving them a natural shelter 
from the storms of winter. A wise rancher always aims 
to include some of this kind of land, for it would be a 
great undertaking to build shelter for the vast herds of 
stock which still wander over the Panhandle. These 
canyons are encountered most unexpectedly, for there 
may not be a tree or a bush to mark the location. In 
places the sides will be nearly perpendicular for a distance 
of several hundred feet. The rains of centuries have 
carved these great excavations, and the little stream at 
the bottom has carried away the debris. The working 
of the water upon the different strata of earth and rock 
has formed many strange and fanciful shapes. There 
will be pillars and columns such as might have been 
carved by the artists of Greece or Rome, and dedicated 
to a god; frowning turrets like unto those on some old 
mediaeval castle; breastworks as of forts will also be dis- 
tinguished. 

The Palo Duro Canyon in Armstrong County is the 
most picturesque feature of the Panhandle topography. 
It has frequently been proposed that this canyon should 
be set aside as a national park. It is as much as eight 
hundred feet deep in places. One is lost in admiration of 
the strange and fanciful figures made by the washing of 
the waters in the rainy season in Palo Duro. Even 
Niagara sinks into insignificance when compared with the 
wild grandeur of this great chasm with its deep abysmal 
solitude. 

One must not understand that this prairie is really 
smooth like an even, well-kept lawn, for so it may appear 
from a distance. On the contrary the smoothest of this 
western Texas prairie has an uneven surface, and is filled 
with the holes of the mole and field-mouse and prairie- 
dog. Through the slight thickness of earth which covers 



The Panhandle and the Staked Plain 257 

these holes, the feet of the horse frequently sink, and, 
unless a horse has been brought up on the prairies, he can 
never be taught to run upon them with that confidence 
which develops his full powers. 

This part of Texas was not laid out into counties until 
the United States was celebrating the centennial of its 
independence, thirty years after the admission of Texas 
into the federation. In that year this immense region 
of the State was subdivided into fifty-six counties. 
Names were bestowed upon these new subdivisions to 
commemorate revolutionary heroes. Alamo victims, early 
pioneers, and colony promoters. Yoakum, the diligent 
historian of the State, was likewise honoured. At that 
time there were not enough settlers in many of these 
to make a working corps of necessary officials, so that 
they remained unorganized for a number of years after- 
wards. 

The Panhandle used to be, and still is in a modified de- 
gree, a region of princely ranches. In the western part, 
along the western tier of counties, will be found the fa- 
mous three-million-acre tract given to the Capitol Syndi- 
cate. Thousands of acres have already been alienated, 
but it still is an enormous tract of land to be under one 
management. It is a short grass country, and the shim- 
mering stretches of grassy tableland reach out to the 
distant edge of the sky. It is doubtless true that the cattle- 
men of old spread discouraging reports concerning these 
lands, in order to intimidate prospective settlers because 
of the wealth which they were reaping from the grazing 
of cattle on herbage which cost them nothing. With 
the development of dry farming, however, there arose 
a demand for this land of little rain. It was found possi- 
ble to raise corn, oats, wheat, alfalfa, Kafir corn and 
milo maize, even though the rainfall did not exceed ten 



258 Texas, the Marvellous 

or twenty inches in every twelve months Land values 
advanced so high that the ranchers became willing to 
alienate their possessions in small tracts. 

To a person from one of the Eastern States, unfamil- 
iar with the West, to journey through the rapidly develop- 
ing Panhandle, the surprise comes when one discovers 
that the prairies, which were the favourite grazing lands 
of the buffalo, and over which the red men hunted not 
many decades ago, are now besprinkled here and there 
with the little dwellings of the homesteaders, and the 
primeval sward has yielded to the destructive plough of 
the farmer. Development has everywhere followed the 
construction of the railroads, for the iron highways intro- 
duced settlers along with transportation facilities. 

It was my good fortune, not so very long ago, to pera- 
grate through this section over a new railroad, which had 
just been opened to traffic. In some places the little 
houses of the settlers dotted the prairie at regular inter- 
vals as far as the eye could reach. Occasionally one 
would stumble upon a genuine sod house, or some other 
improvised habitation, but these were infrequent. The 
shingles on the roofs had not been darkened by exposure 
to the weather, and the unpainted siding still appeared 
as if it had just come from a lumber yard. The surface 
that was as yet untouched by the destroyer was covered 
with the short bushlike mesquite; but this was rapidly 
disappearing in order to plant the cotton which has 
proved to be such a profitable crop. Populous villages 
of the prairie-dogs, with the occupants standing at per- 
pendicular near the entrance, ready to tumble in at the 
first alarm, were a common sight. Many rabbits of the 
excessively long-eared variety were visible from the train, 
and an occasional coyote could be seen leisurely running 
away from the track, as if inviting a chase. The mirage 



The Panhandle and the Staked Plain 259 

would frequently deceive us, and some one would point 
out what was apparently a great shimmering lake. But 
we all knew that no water was there — it was all a delu- 
sion like many of our ideas in real life. 

Towns were everywhere springing up along this new 
railroad, some of them almost in a night. One twelve- 
months-old infant municipality boasted a population of 
nearly two thousand. There were a number of two- 
story business blocks, and a fine stone bank building was 
nearly completed. The town had electric lights, and 
was already planning for a water-works plant. Nearly 
every town had a newspaper, and some of them boasted 
more than one. Real estate offices were numerous. As 
this train carried the president and a number of officials 
of the new road, reception committees met us at the sta- 
tions with true Western hospitality. At one station the 
entire population, headed by the town band and a party 
of cowboys on horseback, greeted the party. Everybody 
was boosting his own town, and had at his tongue's end 
all the good points of that place and all the advantages 
of the soil in the neighbourhood. No one was finding 
fault or trying to destroy what others were building up. 
This characteristic will be recognized throughout all the 
newer sections of Texas, and in the older ones as well. 

The Panhandle has passed through severe crises. The 
first settlers were not of the most stable kind. They 
began farming as they would at home, where the annual 
precipitation of moisture was twice or three times as 
great. Forty years' time on the principal sum and five 
per cent interest on the deferred payments had drawn 
them. A few lean years wiped out their funds, and 
they quietly vanished. Since then the limitations as well 
as the possibilities of the Panhandle have been better 
realized. Agriculture has been conformed to suit the 



260 Texas, the Marvellous 

conditions, and crops have been adapted to the soil and 
climate. The newer settlers are better informed about 
the country which they have chosen as a home. These 
later immigrants are far better than the "boomers" of 
a quarter of a century ago. 

The chief city, and the business metropolis of the 
Panhandle, is Amarillo, which is near the centre of the 
twenty-six counties, the "handle" which projects up into 
Oklahoma. You may occasionally hear some one pro- 
nounce it am-ar-ee-yo, the Spanish way. The name 
means yellow, but I assure you that there is no signifi- 
cance in the appellation, for it would be impossible to find 
a yellow streak in Amarillo or its hustling citizens. A 
decade and a half ago, this site was little more than a 
speck on the prairie. But when it became the intersection 
for three great railroads, the city began to assume a new 
importance. It wrested from Trinidad, Colorado, the 
distinction of being the distributing centre for the Pan- 
handle. To-day it is one of the most progressive small 
cities in Texas. 

The early history of Amarillo is interesting, if it is 
recent, for it was the scene of one of the most famous 
town-site wars in the State. The town was originally 
established a mile or more from the present location. 
But there was one wealthy rancher who objected. A 
thousand people had already arrived, and a handsome 
courthouse had been voted. In spite of the prestige al- 
ready gained, this man proposed a town on his own 
land, and at a place that he deemed more desirable. He 
erected a hotel, laid out streets, and built buildings. 
Unable to secure the removal of the courthouse, he 
gradually absorbed all the rest of the town. The mer- 
chants followed, and then came the county officials. 
Gradually the old town was deserted, until practically 



The Panhandle and the Staked Plain 261 

nothing was left but the courthouse. The officers lived 
in the new town, and tramped a mile to transact their 
official duties. This continued for five years, when the 
county building finally followed the people, and the older 
rival entirely disappeared. 

The new towns in the Panhandle to-day are as dif- 
ferent from the old settlements or trading-places as is 
the new Panhandle from the old cattle range. There 
Is still the same wide dusty street along a railroad track, 
or at right angles to it, with square-fronted level houses 
or hip-roofed buildings fronting it on either side. In the 
olden days gambling halls and saloons were more 
numerous than any other buildings. The cowboys came 
in from the ranches after payday and forgot every- 
thing in their games, lurid dance halls, and the delight in 
the cup. It was gaming, dancing and drinking until 
the money was all gone. The chips clicked, the dance 
halls resounded, and the bars were noisy in those "good 
old days." Tascosa was one of the most noted of these 
towns of revelry. Near the town was "Boot Hill," 
■where those who met violent death on the streets or in 
the saloons were hastily consigned to their graves. Now 
ice cream parlors and soda fountains are the only thirst 
dispensers in most of the Panhandle, and you could find 
far worse dance halls right on Broadway than out in 
this section of the one-time "wild and woolly" West. 
The counties have been voted "dry" under local option — 
probably to harmonize with the dryness of the atmos- 
phere. These men who have come out on the prairies 
to make new homes have abandoned all their old tra- 
ditions. 

In Western Texas, and extending into the adjoining 
State of New Mexico, is the region known as the 
Staked Plain. This is the easternmost limit of what 



262 Texas, the Marvellous 

was formerly designated as the Great American Desert. 
It is said that the mission fathers crossed this arid plain 
in their peregrinations, and set up stakes with buffalo 
heads upon them so that others might follow their 
route. This gave the name of Llano Estacado (staked 
plain) to the great plateau crossed. The desert itself 
is monotonous and tiresome only to those who have no 
eye for colour in combinations, such as none of the old 
masters ever spread upon canvas ; to those whose imagina- 
tions are not stimulated by the memory of the men who 
staked trails across the burning, sandy waste; to those 
who find absolutely no appeal in the utter loneliness. 

A map prepared in 1856 gave this slight information 
concerning the Staked Plain : "From the head waters of 
the Red, Brazos and Colorado Rivers to the Rio Pecos 
is a desolate and sterile plain from one hundred and 
fifty to two hundred miles in width, elevated about four 
thousand five hundred feet above the Gulf of Mexico, 
without water or timber, and with a scanty vegetation." 
No further enlightenment was vouchsafed. And yet in 
this semi-arid region of Western Texas a number of 
important rivers have their origin in immense springs 
found in canyons which penetrate this plateau, or in 
undergound rivers which have come to the surface. 

The Llano Estacado, or Staked Plain, has ever been 
a land of mystery to the youthful student of geography. 
The tales of thirsty travellers overcome on its limitless 
stretches, and of the wandering herds of camels, have 
stimulated the imagination of youth everywhere. It is 
generally considered as a desert as inhospitable and 
hopeless as the sandy wastes of the Sahara. It is only 
fair to Texas and the Texans, however, to say that 
absolute desert is almost unknown within its borders. 
A limited region around EI Paso is the closest approach 



The Panhandle and the Staked Plain 263 

to desert in the State. The Staked Plain is a great 
grazing land. To be sure, it requires more acres to 
the animal than the rich Gulf coast, but any of the 
counties within that region will inventory from ten to 
forty thousand head of cattle, besides many sheep, goats, 
horses and mules. Human beings are sometimes infre- 
quent, for Cochran County, on the New Mexican border, 
only enumerated sixty-five persons in 1910, after a 
very diligent search, and Hockley County could only 
muster one hundred and thirty-seven humans of all col- 
ours for the census taker. 

"I love the desert" is an expression I have frequently 
heard in the West from those who dwell there. We 
have been accustomed to hear so many terrible tales 
of suffering upon the desert that the idea of there be- 
ing anything attractive or alluring about it seems en- 
tirely foreign. I want to speak a good word for this 
much maligned portion of our country. The fact is 
that to-day we are able to journey across the desert by 
railroad, and stop at stations where there is an abundant 
supply of water. Each transcontinental railroad has 
left a trail of green spots wherever a water-tank is 
located. Water trains make their trips every day in 
the year. This removes the element of danger that con- 
fronted those who were compelled to travel by wagon 
in the earlier days, and who oftentimes suffered terribly 
when the water supply was exhausted. To-day, with 
no perturbation from dread of the pangs of thirst, if 
we remain near the railway and water, we can turn our 
attention to enjoy the beauties that will be found on the 
desert. The fool-hardy traveller can still encounter dan- 
ger from thirst, and there is not a year in which our 
great Western desert does not claim many victims. The 
wise traveller, however, will forget the dust and discom- 



264 Texas, the Marvellous 

fort and devote himself to admiring the wonders of the 
desert growth, the strange colourings of the sand and 
rocks, the remarkable clearness of the atmosphere, and 
the radiance of sunrise and sunset. 

All the species of cacti flower at some season of the 
year, and there is very little of the desert on which 
some form of the cactus does not grow. Then there is 
also the sage, mesquite, chaparral, and greasewood, be- 
sides numbers of other peculiar species of plants. In 
this mystic desert region there grows vegetation as 
weird and as wonderful as the desert itself. Cacti 
abound in innumerable variety, from the tiny prickly 
balls covered with long grey hairs to giants that tower 
almost as high as the average tree of a forest. The 
cacti are not only the most numerous, but they are to 
me the most beautiful of the forms of vegetable life to 
be found on the desert. 

The several varieties all have their uses to those who 
are versed in the lore of the desert. In them the desert 
Indians find their home, food, drink, raiment and shelter. 
One of the most common species in Texas is the prickly 
pear. The blossom of this cactus is very pretty, and the 
fruit is much prized by both Mexicans and Indians. 
When the spines are burned off, cattle eat it with avidity, 
and it is very nourishing for them. A spineless species 
has been developed by Luther Burbank, and hundreds 
of acres of it are now cultivated as a food for stock. 

The Spanish bayonet is a species of yucca, which 
grows over a much more extended area than the parent 
plant. It will be found all the way from California to 
the middle of Texas. It may be asserted that every 
species of desert plant seems to have some defence. 
Hence it is that one discovers each one of the leaves of 
the Spanish bayonet terminates in a spine. The Span- 



The Panhandle and the Staked Plain 265 

ish bayonet shoots up a stem many feet in height, which 
bears myriads of white and showy flowers almost lily- 
like in appearance. As many as six thousand blossoms 
have been enumerated upon a single plant. It also 
yields a yellow fruit, which ripens in August and Sep- 
tember, and is pulpy and sweet as well as nourishing. 
A peculiarity of the Spanish bayonet is that, if it were 
not for a little moth, this plant would perish, for the 
moth carries the pollen upon the stigma of the flower 
where it lays its own eggs. This protects its eggs, 
and at the same time pollenizes the blossom and per- 
petuates the plant. 

The numbers and varieties of the cactus family, which 
will be found in the various portions of the desert, are 
almost innumerable. One investigator reports forty- 
two different multiformities of cacti in blossom early 
in the month of May in one desert. These range from 
the delicate blossom of tiny plants to the gorgeous 
flowers of the giant species. It is in the month of 
May that these cacti appear at their best. One will find 
white, yellow, purple, pink and scarlet blossoms on every 
side, which seem to have been dyed by the sun itself, 
until he almost abandons the idea that he is in the 
desert and dreams that he is surrounded by some won- 
derful garden. 



CHAPTER XVI 

THE HERO OF SAN JACINTO 

In the beautiful capitol building at Austin are pre- 
served many of the documents and old State papers 
of the Republic of Texas. Among these archives one 
vi'ill find scores of documents bearing the signature of 
the most remarkable man produced by that Republic. 
This signature always reads Sam Houston. The given 
name is so vi^ritten that one can easily give it the in- 
terpretation which people were wont to say he meant, 
and that is, "I am Houston." 

Herein is illustrated one characteristic, which was 
always attributed to the man who was twice president 
of the nine-year Republic, and that is an exaggerated 
ingredient of egotism ; but the man who is always called 
by an abbreviated given name, or by a nickname, has 
already attained an element of popularity that signifies 
a great deal to any one who seeks political preferment. 
This statement is well illustrated in the life of Sam 
Houston, who, during a remarkable political career, 
served as Governor of Tennessee, Representative in the 
United States Congress, President of Texas, Senator 
of the United States, Governor of the State of Texas, 
and Commander-in-Chief of the Texas Army, in addi- 
tion to many inferior political and military offices in 
two Republics. 

In the House of Representatives of the State capitol, 
there hangs a picture of Houston seated in a chair and 
266 



The Hero of San Jacinto 267 

clothed in a brilliantly coloured blanket, or serape, as it is 
called. This depictures another essential characteristic 
of Sam Houston. He always endeavoured to dress in the 
height of fashion, but with a certain peculiar and per- 
sonal idiosyncrasy. This appears even in his earlier 
political career. When Houston was inaugurated Gov- 
ernor of Tennessee, he wore a costume which is de- 
scribed as follows: "A tall bell-crowned, medium- 
brimmed, shining black beaver hat, shining black patent 
leather military stock or cravat incased by a standing 
collar, rufHed shirt, black satin vest, shining black silk 
pants gathered to the waistband with legs full, same 
size from seat to ankle, and a gorgeous red-ground, 
many-coloured gown or Indian hunting shirt, fastened at 
the waist by a huge red sash covered with fancy bead- 
work, with an immense silver buckle, embroidered silk 
stockings, and pumps with large silver buckles." In 
such toggery he must have been a picture wonderful 
to behold. 

A description of Houston as he appeared at the 
grand San Jacinto Ball, just one year after that momen- 
tous victory of the Texans, is as follows: "Being the 
President-elect, he was, of course, the hero of the day, 
and his dress on this occasion was unique and somewhat 
striking. His ruffled shirt, scarlet cassimere waistcoat 
and suit of black silk velvet, corded with gold, was 
admirably adapted to set ofif his fine, tall figure; his 
boots, with short red tops, were laced and folded down 
in such a way as to reach but little above the ankles, 
and were finished at the heels with silver spurs." When 
Houston was a United States Senator, and performing 
his duty as such in the city of Washington, it was his 
habit to wear, in addition to the ordinary clothing of 
the gentlemen of those times, an immense Mexican 



268 Texas, the Marvellous 

sombrero, as well as a blanket with red lining, such as 
the one shown in the portrait described above. It is not 
surprising that his presence on the street in the national 
capital naturally attracted attention. 

In the State Senate of Texas is exhibited a painting 
of Sam Houston, which portrays him as he appeared 
when an exile among the Cherokee Indians. This paint- 
ing reveals a third introspective view of the character 
of this many-sided man, which is not well known except 
to those who have made a study of his life. 

When a young man in the adolescent period, Houston 
decided to abandon the civilization of Western Tennes- 
see, where his family lived, and cast his lot with the 
Cherokee Indians, whose territory lay contiguous to 
his home. The reason for this decision is variously 
stated. One explanation is that his older brothers re- 
fused him permission to study Latin, and the other is 
that he was unwilling to clerk in a country store. It is 
quite probable that his older brothers exercised a tyranny 
over him. A simpler and more plausible explanation 
is that this move was doubtless that breaking out of the 
wild blood and longing for the free life of the wilder- 
ness which characterizes most boys, but which in the 
youthful Houston existed in an even greater intensity. 
In other words, it was the call of the wild. To use his 
own expression, he preferred "measuring deer tracks 
to measuring tape." 

Whether the reasons given are correct or not, it is 
an historic fact that Sam Houston spent several years 
in all following a wild and primitive life. He was 
adopted in the family of one of the under chiefs of the 
Cherokee tribe. "Houston had many of the character- 
istics of the red man in his nature," says Williams in 
his biography ; "among these were his hot blood, his 



The Hero of San Jacinto 269 

strong passions and appetites, his fondness for adventure 
and the untrammelled freedom of the wilderness, his 
solemnly childish vanity and turn for histrionic ef- 
fect, ... an eloquence of original power and impres- 
siveness, a loftiness of spirit and the dominant quality 
of determination and courage." He thoroughly mastered 
the Cherokee language, and lived as one of his adopted 
people. 

Samuel Houston, as he was named, was a descendant 
of a Scotch-Irish family from Northern Ireland. His 
father was an officer of the famous brigade of riflemen 
that Morgan led to the assistance of General Washington 
from the right bank of the Potomac. His mother was a 
pioneer woman of splendid physique, with the strength of 
mind and courage to equal her physical strength. Sam 
was introduced to this — for him — world of romance and 
adventure on the 2nd of March, 1793, at a place called 
Timber Ridge Church, near Lexington, Virginia. At 
the age of thirteen he journeyed with his mother, who 
was already a widow, and numerous brothers and sisters 
over the Allegheny Mountains, the entire family settling 
in the wilds of Western Tennessee. They constructed a 
rude cabin, and lived in the same primitive fashion as 
other pioneers. 

The schooling of the youthful Houston was very 
limited, but in after years he overcame to some extent 
this lack in his early education by reading. Throughout 
his entire life, however, Houston was a man of few 
books, but these few he studied deeply. His literary 
gifts and his power of vigorous expression seem to 
have been a natural gift. And yet we ascertain that 
after he returned from his first exile among the Indians, 
he opened up a country school at the early age of eight- 
een. His intellectual attainments would hardly seem 



270 Texas, the Marvellous 

suited to such a vocation, but it is quite likely that the 
average school pedagogue of that period was not much 
better qualified than Sam Houston. The school was a 
private one, each family paying its own tuition, of which 
one-third was corn, one-third in cotton and other goods, 
and the remaining one-third in cash. 

There were few public positions which Houston did 
not at some time fill. He himself once said that he 
had performed the functions of almost every elective 
position, except that of President of the United States. 
He was as much at home seated on a store box and tell- 
ing stories as he was in a parlour. Add to this a dignity 
of manner, an impressive physique, and a natural friend- 
liness of disposition, and you have the secret of his 
political success. 

"No person," says F. R. Lubbock, the War Governor 
of Texas, "ever met Sam Houston in the early days of 
the Republic without being impressed with his great- 
ness. He was then about forty-two years of age, just 
the prime of life. Standing largely over six feet in 
height, with a massive, well-formed hand, a most re- 
markable foot, measuring more around the instep than 
in length, a large head, a piercing grey eye, a mouth and 
nose indicating character, of fine proportions, and as 
straight as a majestic Indian, he was a most perfect speci- 
men of physical manhood. With such a presence we can 
well understand that upon state occasions his manner 
was graceful and courtly. But more to be admired than 
this, among his friends he was social and agreeable, with 
the ladies most suave and deferential, and towards the 
young always kind, interesting, and assuring. Often 
while in conversation with ladies and children he would 
carve a perfectly shaped ring, heart, chain, cross, or other 
emblem, and tender it to some of the party. He was 



The Hero of San Jacinto 271 

quite fond of whittling, keeping in his pocket soft pine 
or cedar and a good sharp knife for that purpose; and 
the making of these little presents was a pastime for 
himself, and by those who received them they were 
treasured mementoes." 

Houston studied law for six months, and then was ad- 
mitted to the bar of Tennessee. This was not extraor- 
dinary at that period, for "Old Hickory" was made a 
district attorney without knowing how to spell. A sten- 
torian voice and the "gift of gab" signified more in the 
prospective lawyer than technical knowledge in those 
days, and Houston was abundantly supplied with both. 
His caustic tongue brought him many challenges to duels, 
although he never fought but one. He always had a 
ready response for the challenging party. To a friend 
who had challenged him, he said : "Well, I should like 

to know if a man can't abuse his friends, who in h he 

can abuse." This rejoinder brought a laugh, and the 
incident was ended. On another occasion, Houston is 
said to have handed the written challenge over to his 
secretary with the instruction to number it fourteen and 
file it away. He then turned to the messenger and in- 
formed him that this affair must be held in abeyance until 
the other thirteen had been disposed of. 

Houston enlisted in the Army of the United States, in 
1813, to serve against England. His principal fighting 
was in the conflict with the Creek Indians. After the 
massacre at Fort Mims, Houston's regiment joined Gen- 
eral Jackson in his campaign to crush that recalcitrant 
nation. He greatly distinguished himself for personal 
feats of bravery at To-ho-pe-ka, a bend on the Tallaposa 
River. This battle was one of the most desperate and 
most hotly contested engagements ever fought by the 
Indians against white troops. He was wounded several 



272 Texas, the Marvellous 

times in that victorious engagement, nearly losing his 
life as a result of these wounds. He gained the good 
will of Jackson, however, and ever afterwards retained 
that general's friendship and confidence. He was 
promoted to a lieutenancy for gallantry, and remained in 
this service five years. 

Toward the close of his period of enlistment Houston 
was appointed a sub-agent of the Cherokees, because of 
his knowledge of their character and language, and at 
the direct suggestion of General Jackson. Going to 
Washington with a delegation of this tribe, he was re- 
buked by the Secretary of War because of appearing 
before that official garbed like a wild Indian. This led 
to his resignation. Whether this incident is true or not, 
it would be entirely characteristic of the man in his 
youthful days to do just such a thing. We know that on 
other occasions, when pleading for the red man, he did 
clothe himself in their garments. 

The characteristics and personal habits of the youthful 
Houston were not altogether without fault. While a 
candidate for a second term as Governor of Tennessee 
he abandoned the woman who had been his wife for only 
a few weeks, resigned the Governorship, and again 
sought asylum with the Cherokee Indians. The cause 
for this trouble was never made public by either of 
the principals. The best explanation appears to be that 
when he discovered his wife did not reciprocate his own 
affection, his sensitive nature was wounded and his pride 
revolted. It is to his credit that he never would allow 
an unkind or slighting remark to be made about her in 
his presence. She afterwards secured a divorce from 
him and married again. 

During his second and last sojourn with the Cherokees 
the Indians commonly designated this white man as the 



The Hero of San Jacinto 273 

"Big Drunk," because of his convivial habits. These re- 
lapses occurred during periods of great depression to 
which he was subject; possibly, in part, from a sense of 
degradation. At this time the tribe of Cherokees he 
joined lived in Western Arkansas. He was formally ad- 
mitted into the tribe as the adopted son of the chief, 
Oo-loo-tee-kah, or John Jolly, and resumed his Indian 
name of Co-lon-neh, or the Raven. He dressed in 
Indian clothes, and wore his hair in a queue down his 
back after the manner of the tribe. He also married 
after the Indian fashion a Cherokee girl. The period 
of this self-exile lasted more than a year. 

Houston ever remained a friend of the red men, and 
always retained wonderful influence with them. His 
communications to them are almost as picturesque as 
their own writings. Here is a little example from a 
letter sent with a Texan commission to Red Bear in 
1842: 

"My Brothers: . . . My red brothers, who know 
me, will tell you that my counsel has always been for 
peace; that I have eaten bread and drank water with 
the red men. They listened to my voice and were not 
troubled. . . . Bad men make trouble ; they cannot be at 
peace, but when the water is clear they will disturb it, 
and make it muddy. . . . Let the war-whoops be heard 
no more upon the prairies. Let songs of joy be heard 
upon our hills. In our valleys let there be laughter, and 
in our wigwams let the voices of our women and children 
be heard. Let trouble be taken away far from us ; and 
when our warriors meet together, let them smoke the 
pipe of peace and be happy. 

"Your brother, 

"Sam Houston." 



274 Texas, the Marvellous 

It was not possible for a man like Houston, supremely 
conscious of his own abilities, to remain content for 
any considerable time in the seclusion of the wilderness, 
with no companions but the half-civilized aborigines. 
A visit to Washington, and his cordial reception there, 
turned the tide. The greatest and most notable part of 
the career of Sam Houston was subsequent to his second 
voluntary exile. It is quite natural to believe, as has 
been testified to, that Houston had in his mind the idea 
and possibility of a new Republic in which he would 
have a leading place. Like many other restless and am- 
bitious spirits, he doubtless dreamed of wresting this ex- 
pansive empire from turbulent Mexico. His first trip 
there was as a government commissioner to arrange 
treaties with the Comanches and other nomadic Indian 
tribes. This was in 1832, and on this trip he first met 
Austin and others who afterwards became prominent. 
At the request of James Bowie he made a trip to San 
Antonio to have a "talk" with some of the Comanche 
chiefs. 

Under date of February 13, 1833, Houston wrote to 
President Jackson : "I have travelled nearly five hundred 
miles across Texas, and am now enabled to judge pretty 
correctly of the soil and the resources of the country. 
And I have no hesitation in pronouncing it the finest 
country, to its extent, upon the globe; for the greater 
portion of it is richer and more healthy, in my opinion, 
than West Tennessee. There can be no doubt but the 
country east of the Rio Grande would sustain a popula- 
tion of ten millions of souls. My opinion is, that Texas 
will, by her members in convention, on the first of April, 
declare all that country as Texas proper, and form a 
State Constitution. I expect to be present at the con- 
vention, and will apprise you of the course adopted so 



fhe Hero of San Jacinto 276 

soon as its members have taken a final action. It is 
probable I may make Texas my abiding place ; in adopt- 
ing this course, I will never forget the country of my 
birth." 

From this time he did make this "richer and more 
healthy country than West Tennessee ... his abiding 
place." He soon afterwards returned to Nacogdoches, 
and, in a convention summoned to demand organization 
as a separate territory, held at San Felipe on the ist of 
April, 1833, Houston was a delegate from that munici- 
pality. Because of his political experience, Houston oc- 
cupied a prominent place in its deliberations. He was 
chairman of the committee to frame a constitution. 
Thus we find his lot cast with Texas. We also find that 
he was among the first to openly advocate the inde- 
pendence of the territory. Austin was far more con- 
servative on this subject. 

The greater part of Texas at this time was still in the 
primitive condition in which La Salle discovered it when 
he disembarked on the shores of Matagorda Bay. These 
regions were inhabited only by marauding tribes of 
aborigines who knew no restraint. Among them were 
a few white hunters and trappers scarcely less primordial 
in their habits than the savages themselves. Texas at 
that time contained only a small white population of the 
general character of pioneers. It is only natural 
that a man of such an imposing figure as Houston, 
and one who had already enjoyed political prominence 
in a State of the United States, commanded consider- 
ation. 

Houston had not been in Texas long until he was 
made commander-in-chief of the Texan army. He is- 
sued a proclamation calling for recruits. He is said at 
this period to have read with eagerness Caesar's Com- 



276 Texas, the Marvellous 

mentaries for the militaiy lessons to be learned therein. 
His active military experience prior to that time had 
been limited, but he was resourceful, and must have had 
some military talent. It is doubtful that he can be called 
a military genius, however, any more than he can be 
placed on a pedestal with our greatest statesmen. His 
great retreat before the Mexicans, immediately preceding 
the Battle of San Jacinto, almost wholly disintegrated 
his army. But the armies were made up of independent- 
minded pioneers who enlisted for no particular term, and 
there was little discipline. Each soldier appeared and 
vanished as he pleased. After this battle he was taken 
to New Orleans for medical treatment. His wound 
had not received proper attention, and mortification had 
set in before he arrived there. His recovery was slow 
and painful. A score of pieces of bone were removed 
from the wound. 

When Houston was first suggested for the presidency 
of Texas he professed a great unwillingness to be a can- 
didate. It was doubtless only a little discreet coyness. 
He was inaugurated on the 22nd of October, 1836, and 
delivered an extemporaneous inaugural address. He 
displayed on this occasion one of his histrionic effects, of 
which there were many during his career. Removing 
his sword with a dramatic movement, and pausing for a 
moment, as if struggling with his emotions, he extended 
it to the presiding officer with these words : "It now, sir, 
becomes my duty to make a presentation of this sword, 
the emblem of my past ofBce. I have worn it with some 
humble pretensions in the defence of my country, and 
should the danger of my country again call for my 
services, I expect to resume it, and respond to that call, 
if needful, with my blood and my life." 

The responsibilities of the meteoric Republic thus in- 




Copyright Detroit Publishing Co. 

PRESIDENT JACKSON 



The Hero of San Jacinto 277 

terjected among the nations were onerous. With little 
actual money in prospect, it was absolutely necessary 
to maintain an army for defence against invasion, to 
equip a navy to patrol the coast, and to guard against 
hostile Indians, in addition to the ordinary functions 
of the government. Signing the resolution recognizing 
the independence of Texas was the last official act of 
President Andrew Jackson, the friend of Houston. This 
placed the Republic on a little better basis, and officials 
breathed a little more freely. 

"We now occupy the proud attitude of a sovereign and 
independent Republic," said Houston in a message to 
Congress, after recognition by the United States, "which 
will impose upon us the obligation of evincing to the 
world that we are worthy to be free. This will only be 
accomplished by wise legislation, the maintenance of our 
integrity, and the faithful and just redemption of our 
plighted faith wherever it has been pledged. Nothing 
can be better calculated to advance our interests and 
character than the establishment of a liberal and disin- 
terested policy, enlighted by patriotism, and guided by 
wisdom." 

The Constitution of Texas prohibited a second con- 
secutive term, and Mirabeau Lamar was elected to suc- 
ceed Houston. At the end of his term, however, the 
financial condition was so hopeless that the voters rallied 
to their first president and he was again elected. The 
voters were all either Houstonites or Anti-Houstonites. 
By his measures of economy, Houston established 
greater claim to the name of statesman during his second 
term than he did during his previous administration. It 
was difficult for him to restrain the people from declaring 
war against Mexico, because of the latter's aggressions. 
During the three years of this term all bills were paid 



278 Texas, the Marvellous 

from revenues, and there was a small balance in the 
treasury ready to be transferred to his successor. 

While President, Houston's life was a singular mixture 
of frontier primitiveness and ceremonial dignity. His 
home was in a log cabin of only two rooms, which, we 
are told, would not always have been approved by a 
sanitary inspector. On ceremonial occasions he could as- 
sume all the airs of state, and is reported to have worn 
a sort of velvet robe which was certainly in great con- 
trast to his primitive surroundings. He had not yet 
abandoned his convivial habits, and did not, in fact, until 
his second marriage in 1840. At the age of forty-seven 
he took a bride of twenty-one, but they lived happily 
and her influence almost transformed his personal char- 
acter. During his second term he established a better 
house, and relegated many of his reckless habits. Among 
these were both drinking and swearing. He also united 
with the Baptist Church. A little later he dramatically 
said in the United States Senate : "I am a disciple of the 
advocates of temperance. I needed the discipline of the 
advocates of temperance, and I embraced it, sir. I would 
enforce the example upon every American heart that in- 
fluences or is influenced by filial affection, conjugal love, 
or parental tenderness." 

During all of his public career, Houston was con- 
stantly a friend of the United States; he was desirous for 
the annexation of Texas to the greater Republic on her 
border. But his patience was at one time nearly ex- 
hausted over the procrastination, as an incident related 
by an intimate friend illustrates. It also reveals another 
disconformity of this eccentric man, for, when he wished 
to be emphatic, he always referred to himself in the 
third person. Late in February, says this friend, "He 
(Houston) came into my room, booted, spurred, whip 



The Hero of San Jacinto 279 

in hand. Said he, 'Saxe Weimar (his saddle horse) is 
at the door saddled. I have come to leave Houston's 
last words with you. If the Congress of the United 
States shall not by the fourth of March pass some 
measure of annexation which Texas can with honour ac- 
cede to, Houston will take the stump against annexation 
for all time to come.' Without another word, embrac- 
ing after his fashion, he mounted and left." But this 
contingency did not arise. 

After the annexation Houston was made a Senator of 
the United States, and served a number of years in that 
body. He took his seat on the 30th of March, 1846. 
This was in the days of Webster, Calhoun, Clay, Thomas 
N. Benton, and many other giants. Houston naturally 
became conspicuous. A contemporaneous writer (1848) 
speaks of him in Washington as follows : "He (Houston) 
was large of frame, of stately carriage and dignified 
demeanour, and had a lion-like countenance, capable of 
expressing the fiercest passions. His dress was peculiar, 
but it was becoming to his style. The conspicuous 
features of it were a military cap, and a short military 
cloak of fine blue broadcloth with a blood-red lining. 
Afterward I occasionally met him when he wore a vast 
and picturesque sombrero and a Mexican blanket — a sort 
of ornamented bed-quilt — with a slit in the middle, 
through which the wearer's head is thrust, leaving the 
blanket to hang in graceful folds around the body." Dur- 
ing the debates he continually whittled cypress shingles 
of which he always kept a supply. He did not keep his 
light under a bushel, but made his first speech two weeks 
after he entered that august body. As a member of the 
Committee of Military Affairs during the Mexican War 
he was consulted a great deal because of his knowledge 
of that country. In speeches he was always allied with 



280 Texas, the Marvellous . 

the anti-slavery party, generally following the lead of 
Benton. He said he knew neither North nor South. He 
knew only the Union. After the defeat of Benton, Hous- 
ton was the sole representative of the old Union Democ- 
racy from the South. This attitude finally cost Houston 
his seat in the Senate, for he was defeated for re- 
election in 1857. He was generally known in Washing- 
ton as "Old San Jacinto." 

In 1859 Houston was elected Governor of the State 
of Texas in a candidacy with the then Governor, in an 
election in which he ran as an independent candidate. 
"The Constitution and the Union embrace the princi- 
ples by which I will be governed if elected," was his 
platform publicly enunciated. The all-absorbing ques- 
tion before the country at that time was slavery. Texas 
was a hotbed of secessionists, and Houston made an 
active campaign. No other man with his views could 
have won. He met attacks upon himself with scathing 
vituperation. The election of Houston was a victory 
for the conservatives. He assumed the office December 
2nd, 1859. He refused to deliver his inaugural address 
before the joint assembly, according to all precedents, but 
delivered it from the portico of the capitol to a large 
audience gathered on the steps and lawn below. "Texas," 
said he, "will maintain the Constitution and stand by the 
Union. It is all that can save us as a nation. Destroy 
it and anarchy awaits us." The election of Lincoln to 
the Presidency in the following year precipitated a cli- 
max to the struggle. 

South Carolina seceded on the 20th day of December, 
i860, and within a month a number of the Southern 
States had followed her example. In Texas it was a 
point of honour with a great many to have the State with- 
draw before Lincoln was inaugurated, and thus avoid 



The Hero of San Jacinto 281 

the necessity of submitting even for a day to "Black 
Republican rule." Houston was doing all that was pos- 
sible to prevent his State from severing its ties. He said 
of some of the agitators : "I know some of them, who 
are making the most of the fuss, who would not make 
good negroes if they were blacked." 

In the presidential election of i860, the vote of Texas 
had been strongly in favour of the secession candidate. 
In the election the votes were three to one against Hous- 
ton, but this man of iron will did not wholly despair. He 
was outspoken in his condemnation of the secessionists. 
He refused to convene the Legislature, or to call a con- 
vention for fear that it would declare in favour of seces- 
sion. He was, however, practically compelled to sum- 
mon an extra session of the Legislature to meet on the 
2 1 St day of January, 1861. At the meeting of this body 
he still endeavoured to prevent a declaration for seces- 
sion, but without avail. He, nevertheless, declared that 
he would stand by his State, whatever its decision might 
be. 

In his message transmitting the South Carolina Reso- 
lutions, a very lengthy document, Governor Houston 
declared his "unqualified protest against and dissent from 
the principles enunciated in the resolutions." "In be- 
coming a State of the Union," said he, "Texas agreed 
'not to enter into any treaty, alliance, or confederation, 
and not, without the consent of Congress, to keep troops 
or ships of war, enter into any agreement or compact 
with any other State or foreign power.' All these rights 
belonged to Texas as a nation. She ceased to possess 
them as a State." Secession won by an immense vote. 
Houston was summoned to appear before the convention 
which had been called, and swear allegiance to the Con- 
federate States, but he refused. 



282 Texas, the Marvellous 

"Sam Houston! Sam Houston! Sam Houston!" 
called out the presiding officer of the convention — but 
there was no response. The old Governor sat in his 
office whittling his pine stick. Thereupon this body 
declared the office of Governor vacant, and ordered the 
Lieutenant-Governor to assume the duties of the execu- 
tive. 

Houston issued an address of protest to the people, 
but made no attempt to retain the office by force. "I 
love Texas," he declared, "too well to bring civil strife 
and bloodshed upon her. To avert this calamity, I shall 
make no endeavour to maintain my authority as chief 
executive of the State, except by the peaceful exercise 
of my functions. When I can no longer do this I shall 
calmly withdraw from the scene, leaving the government 
in the hands of those who have usurped its authority, 
but still claiming that I am its chief executive." He 
then entered his formula : "I protest in the name of the 
people of Texas against all the acts and doings of this 
convention, and declare them null and void. I solemnly 
protest against the act of its members, who are bound 
by no oath themselves in declaring my office vacant, be- 
cause I refuse to appear before it and take the oath 
prescribed." 

Gathering up his personal effects. General Houston 
returned to his home in Huntsville. His eldest son, Sam 
Houston, Jr., entered the Confederate service, for which 
his father fitted him with arms and equipment. Although 
Houston had had many opportunities to amass wealth, 
his means were small. He owned a double log cabin and 
some land near Huntsville. He was accused of plotting 
to set up Texas again as an independent Republic. But 
this charge was false. His health soon began to fail very 
perceptibly, for old age was telling upon his rugged 




MONUMENT OVER SAM HOUSTON'S GRAVE, HUNTSVILLE 



The Hero of San Jacinto 283 

constitution. He suffered painful and wasting illnesses. 
He became melancholy and despondent. Sorrow for the 
miseries of his country, poverty in his own household, 
a broken down constitution, saddened his last days as 
he approached the veil that separates time from eter- 
nity. 

The last speech of the old warrior was delivered in 
Houston on the i8th of March, 1863, and he was lis- 
tened to with respectful attention. When Vicksburg fell 
he reahzed that the Confederacy was doomed. On the 
26th of July, 1863, he passed away. A widow and eight 
children survived him. He was placed at rest in the 
cem.etery of his home town. 

The will of Sam Houston is characteristic of the man. 
With regard to the education of his sons, this final testa- 
ment reads : 

"My will is that my sons should receive solid and 
useful education and that no portion of their time be 
devoted to the study of abstract science. I greatly desire 
that they may possess a thorough knowledge of the 
English language, with a good knowledge of the Latin 
language. I request that they be instructed in the Holy 
Scriptures, and next to these that they be rendered thor- 
ough in a knowledge of geography and history. I wish 
my sons to be taught an entire contempt for novels and 
light reading, as well as for the morals and manners 
with whom they may be associated or instructed." 



CHAPTER XVII 



LIFE IN THE EARLY DAYS 



Do you enjoy romance and tragedy? If so, you will 
luxuriate in the early annals of Texas. There is scarcely 
a foot of soil in Texas which could not relate its tale 
of heroic deed or daring adventure. When the Ameri- 
cans began to settle in that State, the greater part of it 
was nothing more than one vast wilderness. The Spanish 
imprint was confined to a small area. This "call of the 
wild" drew men of roving dispositions and devotees of 
adventure in large numbers. These men delighted in the 
wild woods and the free prairie, and gloried in all the 
primeval scenes of nature. The deer, the turkey, the 
buffalo, the wild horses, and the painted savages as well 
— all possessed charms for these restless spirits. Some 
of them were enticed by the very troubles that repelled 
others. 

With the exception of the efforts of the empresarios, 
there was no colonizing. The immigrants came in by 
twos and threes. The individual, unable longer to endure 
the hardships of the civilization which had encroached 
upon him, moved out to enjoy the comforts and con- 
veniences of the wilderness. At first he consisted of 
himself, his dog and his gun. A little later he probably 
consisted of himself, several dogs, one wife and many 
children. Still later a neighbour or two of precisely 
the same definition was added to the above-named con- 
comitants. 

284 



Life in the Early Days 285 

After the establishment of the Republic, and fol- 
lowing its merging with the United States, the frontier 
of Texas was ever a scene of disturbance. The cartogra- 
phers of that period indicate all that expansive region 
west of San Antonio as the "Range of the Comanche 
Indians." This is practically the only information vouch- 
safed. We can scarcely realize what these early settlers 
were compelled to endure while attempting to subdue the 
wilderness. A man might start out in the morning to gtt 
his horses or oxen. Upon his failure to return a search 
would be made, and his body found filled with arrows 
and scalped. A man might leave home in the morning 
filled with happiness, and return in the evening only to 
stumble upon the bloody corpse of his wife, instead of 
finding a savoury supper prepared by her loving hands. 

Augustine and Thaddeus Douglas, of fifteen and thir- 
teen years respectively, were sent out on the range by 
their father to secure the oxen, as their father was pre- 
paring to flee before the advancing hosts of Santa Anna, 
a short time prior to San Jacinto. Returning in the after- 
noon, the flaming cabin surrounded by painted warriors 
met the horrified gaze of the boys. They concealed them- 
selves in the chaparral, and succeeded in escaping the 
savages after many exciting adventures, for they were 
unarmed. They were captured and kept prisoners by the 
Mexican troops until after their sanguinary defeat. 
These boys eventually grew up to manhood and became 
good citizens of the State. 

In addition to the numerous bands of hostile Indians, 
who roamed almost at will from the demarking line of 
New Mexico to the coastal region of Texas, there were 
hundreds of horse thieves, desperadoes, gamblers, and 
fugitives from justice in general who had escaped from 
other States. Out here on the limitless prairies the 



286 Texas, the Marvellous 

very vastness of the territory seemed to assure protec- 
tion. If pursued too hotly from the Texan side, they 
would flee across the Rio Grande into Mexican territory ; 
and likewise Mexican desperadoes would cross to the 
eastern side to protect themselves from Mexican justice. 

It was indeed a puissant hand that was needed here 
to overawe this class of lawless citizens. It vras for the 
purpose of protecting the settlers from the forays of the 
Indians and white outlaws, as well as for punishing Mexi- 
cans, that there came into existence a band of scouts, or 
bushwhackers, if you want to term them such, who were 
employed by the Texas Government and known as the 
Texas Rangers. To affiliate with this band it was abso- 
lutely necessary for a man to possess courage, to be a 
splendid rider and an unerring shot, and to have a horse 
worth at least one hundred dollars. For the utilization 
of all of these qualifications the ranger was remunerated 
with the munificent sum of one dollar per day. Many 
of them did not enjoy this pay very long, for they were 
quickly laid low by the bullet of some hostile white or 
red or brown man whom they were pursuing and en- 
deavouring to bring to justice. 

The ranger was usually clothed in buckskin and wore 
a broad-brimmed hat. For his accoutrement three or 
four revolvers and as many bowie knives were thrust 
through his belt, and a short rifle was thrown across 
his arm. The wide hat protected the ranger from the 
piercing sun in the long hikes across the prairie. The 
leggings of buckskin or cowskin shielded his ankles from 
the thorny bush and cactus. The large clanking spurs 
instilled new life into a tardy pony when occasion de- 
manded. But the most important part of his equipment, 
outside of his own personal courage, was a horse of great 
speed and endurance, for upon this animal depended not 



Life in the Early Days 287 

/ only his own effectiveness, but his safety as well. With 
such an animal a ranger has been known to cover eighty 
miles of rough prairie between sunrise and sunset. 

The rangers carried no tents, and seldom employed 
baggage wagons. Frequently they were obliged to sub- 
sist solely on game. At night they enwrapped themselves 
in their blankets anywhere within the lines of their senti- 
nels. They were always ready for the chase of the red- 
skins at a moment's notice. Exciting enough was such 
a life for any devotee of romance and adventure. They 
attired themselves practically as they chose, and they elec- 
ted their own officers. Returning from a long chase 
running into weeks or months, the men would enter the 
settlements almost in tatters. Men and officers were on 
terms of perfect equality, calling each other by their 
Christian or nick-names. 

"All ready, boys? Go ahead!" This was usually the 
only order from the commander. Once the engagement 
began, each man fought quite independently of the others. 

The rangers came into existence along about 1840 
in the neighbourhood of San Antonio, which was then 
almost on the extreme frontier. The conditions were 
anything but encouraging for one who wished to settle 
in the country and enjoy a peaceful life. It was almost 
impossible to keep good horses. Realizing the necessity 
of an armed and active force to hold these desperadoes in 
check. General Houston commissioned John Coffee Hays, 
who is better known in history as Jack Hays, to raise a 
company of kindred spirits to follow the horse thieves 
and Indians anywhere he wished and to shoot them on 
the spot if necessary. At that time he was a young sur- 
veyor, and practically unknown. 

Hays was very particular as to the type of men whom 
he enlisted in his company, and for that reason he prob- 



288 Texas, the Marvellous 

ably collected the most efficient set of Indian fighters 
that Texas ever produced. It was not long until a few 
feet of soft earth or a few bones bleaching beneath the 
sun out on the prairie marked the spot where had ter- 
minated the earthly career of some outlaw. Under Hays 
the Texas Rangers achieved a name and a reputation 
which was world-wide. The very name of Hays and 
his rangers became a terror to evildoers. The red man 
of the plains felt the weight of his mailed hand, and 
learned to dread an encounter with him and his men. 
When the tables were turned, and these men were taken 
prisoners by the Mexicans, they drew the black beans, 
which doomed them to military execution within a few 
minutes, with absolute composure even if their hearts 
may have thumped a little wildly. 

One of the greatest encounters between rangers and 
Indians was that commonly designated as the Bird Creek 
Battle, in 1839. Thirty-one rangers under Captain Bird 
encountered a force of hostiles near Fort Griffin, not far 
from a small stream, since called Bird's Creek, and in 
the vicinity of the present town of Belton. The rangers 
pursued the fleeing and scattering Indians for some dis- 
tance. While camping with lessened precaution, they 
were almost surrounded by the wily savages, who had 
received reinforcements. The rangers made a sudden 
dash for a ravine, where there was also a spring. The 
Indians sent up "signal smokes," which were answered 
from several directions. Very quickly other bands of 
Indians approached the Texans, imtil three hundred 
painted savages, led by the noted chief, Buffalo Hump, 
encompassed the little band of intrepid rangers. The 
odds were fearful, but the rangers were cool, determined, 
and undaunted. Few shots were wasted. Charge after 
charge of the Indians was met by a hail of leaden missiles. 



Life in the Early Days 289 

At length one of the rangers vowed that he would kill 
the chief, who led his men in the encircling charges, and 
he succeeded in the attempt after a few futile shots. This 
denouement demoralized the savages, and they finally 
withdrew. Half a hundred Indians journeyed to the 
happy hunting grounds, while the captain and four of his 
rangers were killed. 

The experiences that one reads in a number of books 
of reminiscences that have been published, and which 
may still be heard from a few of the later pioneers who 
survive, nearly surpass belief. They seem almost to 
transcend the power of human endurance. The rangers 
reached their maximum in numbers during the Mexican 
War. Captain Walker's company assisted General Tay- 
lor in his operations around Brownsville. "Jack" Hays 
himself mustered into the service three regiments of 
Texas Rangers, all of which did effective service during 
that conflict. They were employed to disperse the gueril- 
las, who everywhere harassed the Americans in their 
lines of commimications, and they fully demonstrated 
their ability to cope with that class of belligerents. 

The Texas Rangers became the terror of the Mexican 
guerillas. Years of fierce border warfare had inured 
them to every hardship and prepared them for every 
eventuality. They remembered the wrongs which they 
themselves had suffered at the hands of Mexican bandits, 
and the deadly strife in which their friends had suc- 
cumbed. Now the tables were turned, and many of them 
welcomed the opportunity for vengeance. Texas fur- 
nished more troops to aid the United States than she 
had brought into the field to achieve her own independ- 
ence a decade earlier. It was a higher percentage in 
proportion to the population than any other State of 
the United States, 



290 Texas, the Marvellous 

One of the most noted of the Texas Rangers and bor- 
der fighters was William A. Wallace, who is generally 
known as "Big Foot" Wallace. He was a man more than 
six feet in height, large of frame, and a thorough Texan 
in every way. He migrated to Texas in the year follow- 
ing independence, as a young man of twenty years, and 
lived to pass his eightieth birthday. Because of the death 
of a relative in the Fannin massacre, he had taken an 
oath to go to Texas and spend his life in killing Mexi- 
cans. He settled near Austin, which was then on the 
extreme frontier. He loved the wild woods; he gloried 
in all the primeval scenes of nature. No sooner had 
Wallace heard of the organization of the rangers than 
he journeyed to San Antonio and applied to Captain 
Hays for admission. He was welcomed as one of the 
company. 

Many horse thieves were caught and some were exe- 
cuted by Wallace's company, and a number of skirmishes 
with Indians occurred. He was a member of the un- 
fortunate expedition against Mier, where he was cap- 
tured. Twenty-two months' confinement in the horri- 
ble Mexican prisons and the suffering of many indignities 
did not mollify his sentiments towards the Mexicans. 
As a result he welcomed the outbreak of the Mexican 
War and enrolled with one of the bands of Texas Rang- 
ers, in which he did splendid service. Wallace died in 
1899, ^nd by an act of the Legislature was buried in the 
State cemetery at Austin, — the city in which he had 
dug the first well, and where he had pursued the last 
herd of buffalo that ever sank a hoof on that site. In 
this cemetery will be found the graves of scores of the 
men who did things and made for themselves names in 
the history of the Republic and State of Texas. 

Wallace carried the mail from San Antonio to El 




j;ii.; iiiur Wallace 



Life in the Early Days 291 

Paso for a long time. As late as 1854 there was not a 
settlement from Medina county to El Paso, a distance of 
hundreds of miles. Mails were first despatched once a 
month. At a later period a stage was run a little more 
frequently. It cost a hundred dollars to go from San 
Antonio to El Paso. For five hundred miles no change 
cf teams was made. The average daily travel was about 
fifty miles. It was not easy work for the driver and 
guards, and many a brave boy was lost. On several oc- 
casions Wallace's party was attacked by the Indians with 
serious losses, and again Mexican bandits would waylay 
them. The marauding savages through that western 
country were generally the bloodthirsty Apaches, who 
created so much trouble for the United States in later 
years. At times there was scarcely a trip in which some 
one, either guard or passenger, was not killed. When 
"Big Foot" Wallace quit the mail service, he was commis- 
sioned by Governor P. H. Bell to collect a company of 
rangers for frontier defence. 

The hardest fight that Wallace and his men experi- 
enced during their service was'on the Todos Santos (All 
Saints) Creek, at a place called the Black Hills, sixteen 
miles from the present town of Cotulla, in La Salle 
Coimty. There were eighty Indians opposed to only 
nineteen rangers, and one of the latter was so sick that 
he was forced to lie on a blanket under a mesquite tree 
during the combat. It was hot and dry weather, and the 
rangers had been three days without water. The time 
was in August, 1854, and the rangers were fighting to 
obtain possession of a water-hole which was in the 
hands of the Comanches. Captain Wallace knew 
where all the water-holes were, and had conducted 
his men over the hot and desolate hills and val- 
leys, through prickly pear and catclaw bushes, to this 



292 Texas, the Marvellous 

watering place. He discovered the Indians there before 
him, and a desperate battle ensued for an hour or more. 
The Indians were finally driven away, leaving twenty-two 
of their number dead on the ground, among whom was 
the chief. Captain Wallace had killed him with a large 
rifle which once belonged to Colonel James Bowie. 
The mesquite tree behind which Wallace stood during 
the fight was struck by many bullets. More than one 
Indian had fallen under his fire. Several of the rangers 
were wounded, some of them severely, and they were 
carried on stretchers to Fort Inge. Not qne of the 
rangers was killed. 

The life of the early Texans is also well illustrated 
by the career of Edward D. West fall, who entered Texas 
about the time of its admission as a State. Although 
a bright man for those days. West fall loved the solitude 
and the freedom of the wilds like many another of his 
kind. He quickly deserted the habitations of civilized 
men, and built a cabin on the banks of the Leona River. 
He became a noted man on the frontier as an Indian 
fighter and a trailer for soldiers and rangers. Raids 
from hostile Indians were numerous throughout that 
territory in those days, and the experiences of West fall 
would fill a book in themselves. He was a dead shot, 
and the Indians learned to know and fear him. As the 
country began to be peopled and domestic stock was in- 
troduced in greater numbers, Westfall finally sought 
some neighbours as a protection for himself and his stock 
from the marauding bands of Indians. He proceeded 
to San Antonio, and ofifered one hundred acres of land 
to any one who would accompany him. Several accepted 
and went with him, but the majority of them soon tired 
of the experience and quickly returned. 

At one time a Frenchman, named Louie, came out and 



Life in the Early Days 293 

wanted to live with West fall. They intended to go 
to Fort Inge to secure the Frenchman's personal prop- 
erty, but postponed the trip until nightfall, as there were 
indications of Indians. The savages were nearer than 
West fall himself dreamed, for they were then in ambush 
for him. After killing one Indian, Westfall was him- 
self wounded. The Frenchman acquitted himself well, 
but he was struck with a fatal bullet. Although the In- 
dians fled, Westfall remained in his cabin absolutely help- 
less for several days without any help reaching him. 
He then dragged himself and patiently made his way 
to the fort. It seems marvellous that such venturesome 
men survive even the allotted time for man, but West- 
fall, like his friend and boon companion, "Big Foot" 
Wallace, lived several years beyond the usual three score 
and ten and died a natural death. 

The little forts scattered about the country at different 
times were temporary affairs. A traveller in describing 
Fort Inge (1856) says: "As is usually the case with 
our nominal Indian forts, there were no structures for 
defence, the only thing suggesting these being a stockade 
of mesquite trunks, surrounding the stables, which were 
open thatched sheds. There were, perhaps, a dozen build- 
ings, of various sizes, as officers' quarters, barracks, 
bakery, hospital, guard-room and others. The buildings 
were all rough and temporary, some of the officers' lodg- 
ings being mere jacals of sticks and mud. But all were 
whitewashed, and neatly kept, by taste and discipline." 

Many were the trials of the early settlers, and harrow- 
ing were their experiences. In the vicinity of the town 
of Gonzales there lived in the pioneer days one Michael 
Putnam, and another settler named Lockhart. They 
were industrious and thrifty men, and each had a grow- 
ing family. Life ahead loomed bright and cheerful. 



294 Texas, the Marvellous 

One bright day, however, four of their children from 
eight to thirteen years of age, who had gone along the 
river to gather pecans, were discovered by a band of 
wandering Comanches. With a wild shout these savages 
seized the children and dashed away. One can imagine 
the consternation in the two households when the children 
failed to return in the evening. A bonnet or two and 
little Jimmy Lx)ckhart's hat were found, while horse 
tracks were numerous. A posse of neighbours was soon 
organized and pursuit made. Day after day the chase 
was maintained, and the tracks of the children were occa- 
sionally identified at the camping places. At last the 
quest had to be abandoned because they were entering 
too far into the Indian country for a small force. An- 
other and larger expedition was quickly gathered. The 
children were located in an Indian camp, and an attack 
followed. Though greatly outnumbered, the white men 
struggled with a desperation almost amounting to frenzy. 
But valour was obliged to yield to numbers. The settlers 
withdrew after several of their number had been killed. 

Matilda Lockhart was given up a couple of years 
afterwards in accordance with a treaty. James Putnam 
was recovered a few years later by his parents, but his 
eldest sister had by this time been espoused by a chief 
and would not abandon her adopted people. More than 
thirty years afterward, however, a middle-aged white 
woman was ransomed by an Indian agent. She was so 
young when captured by the Indians that she did not even 
remember her name. James Putnam learned of her, how- 
ever, identifying her by a scar on her arm caused by a 
bum. This is just one of the tragedies of pioneer hfe 
that sometimes overtook the hardy early settlers of 
Texas. 

Near where the Sunset Route crosses the Colorado, 



Life in the Early Days 295 

there lived in 1837 a family named Lions, who belonged 
to Austin's Colony. In the morning Mr. Lions and his 
son Warren, a lad of thirteen, went out to milk the cows. 
A party of Comanche Indians were lying in wait and, 
after killing and scalping the father, took the boy cap- 
tive. The years passed with nothing but vague and un- 
reliable rtimours of the captive boy. Every one gave him 
up for lost except the mother. During the Mexican War 
a party of Comanches appeared in San Antonio on a 
trading expedition. It leaked out that one of the war- 
riors was an American. An interview through an in- 
terpreter removed all doubt. Friends resolved to take 
him home to his waiting mother if possible. But this 
was not easy, for the boy had grown to be a man enam- 
oured of the savage life. He already had two Indian 
wives. At last he was induced to go for a visit, but he 
faithfully promised to return to his dusky spouses. He 
finally consented to join a band of rangers to fight Mexi- 
cans in Southwest Texas, and was thus weaned from his 
Indian habits and reconciled to civilization. Before 
his service ended he participated in several engagements 
with the Indians, and proved himself a valuable ranger 
because of his intimate knowledge of the Indian char- 
acter and habits. 

In what is now Limestone County, on a line between 
Dallas and Houston, in the early thirties, was Parker's 
Fort. This fruited and thickly-populated region was 
then a wilderness. The Fort was merely a number of 
cabins engirded by a stockade. At the comers were 
block-houses, and the outer walls were perforated with 
loopholes. It was built, like many others, for the purpose 
of being occupied by the settlers when threatened by In- 
dians. The patriarch of the settlement was Elder John 
Parker, and his relatives were the most numerous. Early 



296 Texas, the Marvellous 

in the morning of a bright day in May, 1836, while most 
of the men were at work in their fields, several hundred 
Comanches and Kiowas suddenly appeared on the prai- 
rie. They claimed to be friendly, but as soon as they 
learned the men were away, their butchering began. 
The women and few men left fled and endeavoured to 
escape. Some did make their way to safety, but many 
fell. Others were borne away as captives. 

Among the captives was a little girl of seven summers, 
named Cynthia Ann Parker, and her brother John. Many 
efforts were made by soldiers to trace these children. It 
was not until almost a quarter of a century later, after 
an Indian defeat at Peace River, that they were located. 
Cynthia Ann was then the wife of the chief to whom she 
had borne several children. She had forgotten the 
English language, and it was some time before she was 
reconciled to civilized life. The State extended her a 
pension of one hundred dollars a year. Her son became 
the famous Comanche Chief Ouanah Parker, who was 
respected by whites as well as Indians. He visited his 
mother at her home. He died in 191 1 and was buried by 
the side of his mother in Oklahoma. Her brother John 
escaped from the Indians and fled to Mexico, but later 
returned to Texas and served in the Confederate armies 
during the war between the States. 

The American settlers in Texas were generally men 
inured to pioneer life. They were splendid shots, and 
entered the country of their adoption equipped and ready 
to endure hardships and to defend themselves. There 
were a few exceptions in the way of European colonies. 
Although a number of German settlements were estab- 
lished, there is a record of only one English colony. 
This was engineered in 1832 by Dr. Beck, a native of 
England. After many hardships this colony of fifty-nine 



Life in the Early Days 297 

men, women and children reached their concession a 
little below the present town of Del Rio. With much 
ceremony the streets and plazas of the village of Dolores 
(sorrows) were platted, and humble cabins were erected. 
A brush wall was constructed for protection against 
marauding Indians. But the drought arrived, the settle- 
ment was raided by the copper savages, and it gradually 
vanished. Some of the colonists returned to their native 
land, while others took up new abodes in other settle- 
ments already established. 

One party of sixteen souls from Dolores started for 
San Patricio. On the way a band of Comanches over- 
took them and killed all the men. Two women, Mrs. 
Horn and Mrs. Harris, and some children were kept as 
captives. It was many months before they were ran- 
somed from the Indians by some traders and restored 
to civilization. Their sufferings will not bear descrip- 
tion. It is simply an instance of the experiences of the 
colonists who came to Texas. The fate of the children 
was never known. Many another incipient town, with 
even fairer prospects, shared the fate of this "City of 
the Sorrows." Even the sites of Tenoxtitlan and Nash- 
ville, once flourishing settlements, are scarcely known 
to-day. 

In 1830 the celebrated James Bowie became a citizen 
of San Antonio and married the daughter of Don Vera- 
mendi, the Vice-Governor. On the second of November, 
1 83 1, he and his brother Rezin P. Bowie, and seven other 
Americans and two negro servants started to hunt for 
the San Saba silver mines. When in the neighbourhood 
of the old mission on the San Saba River, they were 
attacked by one hundred and sixty-four Tehuacana and 
Caddo Indians. The Bowies threw up temporary breast- 
works, which the Indians repeatedly and vigorously at- 



298 Texas, the Marvellous 

tacked. Failing in these assaults, the Indians next at- 
tempted to burn them out by setting fire to the long 
prairie grass. The Americans, however, sternly held 
their ground. The fight lasted from sunrise in the morn- 
ing until dark, when the savages sullenly retired, having 
lost nearly one-half of their number. Only one of 
Bowie's men was killed, and three were wounded. 

Near Dawson, in Navarro County, is a monument to 
the Heroes of Battle Creek Fight. This fight illustrates 
the fact that the appearance of surveyors, out on the 
prairie staking off lands granted to colonies, was almost 
invariably a signal for a new outburst of violence to- 
wards the whites. A "big talk" had been held with the 
Indians, and a treaty entered into in which were these 
words : "Peace is never to die between the parties that 
make this agreement, they have shaken hands upon it, and 
the Great Spirit has looked down and seen their actions. 
He will curse all the chiefs that tell a lie before his eyes. 
Their women and children cannot be happy." But the ink 
was scarcely dry before the treaty was violated. Sur- 
veying parties had initiated their work. A party of 
twenty-three men were sent to survey lands in what was 
then Robertson County. Several hundred Indians were 
in that neighbourhood killing buffalo for winter meat. 
All went well until the surveyors began their work. The 
Indians warned them to desist, but the surveyors refused. 
An ambuscade followed and the surveyors were com- 
pelled to fight for their lives. Of the entire party only 
seven escaped, five of whom were seriously woimded. 
Many other surveying parties met with similar disaster. 

In 1840 a Comanche invasion advanced to Lavaca Bay 
on the Gulf. The savages pillaged all the stores available 
and their animals were loaded with booty. Linville was 
sacked and Victoria burned. They shot the men and kept 



Life in the Early Days 299 

women and children as prisoners. Several volunteer 
companies rallied to drive the marauders off. They ren- 
dezvoused at Plum Creek. In the early morning, as the 
Indians were packing their stolen mules, the Texans at- 
tacked. The Indians were panic-stricken, and shot sev- 
eral of their prisoners. The Texans were under General 
Felix Houston. The Indian chief, bedecked with high 
silk hat, fine boots, gloves, and a coat with brass buttons, 
pranced in front of the Americans shouting defiance. At 
first he also carried a large umbrella opened to the full. 
But he soon bit the dust. Beneath the fiery onslaught of 
the infuriated Texans the Indians finally fled in con- 
fusion. Many were killed before they reached safety 
in the cane brakes and hills. It is believed that this 
foray, probably the most formidable in Texas, was insti- 
gated by the Mexicans, who promised support. The In- 
dians retired to their accustomed haunts to brood over 
their defeat and to plan revenge on their Mexican allies, 
who failed them at the critical time. 

One of the successful settlements of foreigners was 
established by Henry Castro, who was descended from 
a prominent Portuguese family. After the fall of Napo- 
leon he emigrated to the United States, but returned to 
France to negotiate a loan for the Republic of Texas. 
For his services he was granted immense tracts of land 
and became the founder of Castroville, a little west of 
San Antonio. In all he brought to Texas four hundred 
and eighty-five families and four hundred and fifty-seven 
single men in twenty-seven ships. He was a man of 
extraordinary ability and perseverance, or he could never 
have surmounted the many difficulties that arose. 

The first settlers introduced by Castro arrived in San 
Antonio in 1843. ^^ ^^^ time there were few settlers 
west of that city. Some of his immigrants were French, 



300 Texas, the Marvellous 

and others were Germans from Alsace, at that time a 
part of France. The prospect of from one hundred and 
sixty to three hundred and twenty acres or more of free 
land seemed like a godsend to the impoverished peasants 
of France. But they were inexperienced in frontier life. 
Few knew anything about firearms, and those who did 
possessed no guns suitable to kill game or protect from 
savages. They came from towns and thickly-settled dis- 
tricts, and knew nothing about roughing it out on the 
prairie or in the woods. Furthermore, they had little 
money. 

One can only in a measure imagine the feelings of 
lonesomeness and disappointment when these European 
settlers arrived in the wilds of Western Texas. There 
was scarcely a trail, except that left by the surveyor. 
There was not even material with which to erect houses, 
for the mesquite was too short. Deer and smaller game 
were plentiful, however, so that a supply of fresh meat 
was easy to obtain. Many of these settlers in a short 
time developed into splendid htmters and effective Indian 
fighters. When a band of painted Comanche Indians 
would appear, these German and French colonists were 
terribly affrighted. And they had reason to be fright- 
ened. An occasional visit from rangers gave a little 
courage. 

Henry Castro left a diary which is full of interest. 
From it I make a few extracts : 

"July 31st, 1843. — Returned to San Antonio. Two of 
our rangers were taken sick with a fever. 

"I have, during this excursion of seven days, seen one 
hundred and sixty miles of country, which can only be 
compared to an English park, without meeting a single 
settlement. No dangerous wild animals were found, but 
herds of deer and wild horses. With coffee, sugar, and 



Life in the Early Days 301 

flour, we have lived well from the product of our hunt- 
ing and fishing and always had plenty of honey. 

"August 25th. — Some of my colonists who had left 
Galveston in the early part of July will not reach this 
place as soon as it was expected on account of sickness. 
At Santitas' ranch, forty miles from San Antonio, the 
Indians attacked a cart which had unfortunately re- 
mained behind the convoy. A young colonist aged nine- 
teen by the name of Z. Rhin was killed. The driver, 
who was an American, made his escape. The Indians 
burned the cart and all its contents. The driver remained 
in the woods the following day, and although the Indians 
numbered twenty he kept them at bay with his long 
rifle. One of the hands of poor Rhin was found nailed 
to a tree. He was probably the first martyr of 
European emigration by Indian brutality in Western 
Texas. 

"August 26th. — To-day five or six Comanches came 
within two hundred yards of the house I occupy on 
Soledad Street and succeeded in capturing eleven mules 
that were grazing in the enclosure. Alarm was given in 
the town and the robbers were pursued, but without any 
result. The mules were lost. Such acts of audacity on 
the part of the Indians intimidate my colonists and 
tend to injure my enterprise. 

"Four volunteers who were sent by Captain Hays to 
reconnoitre on the Nueces River, ninety miles from San 
Antonio, were surprised while bathing in the river by a 
large party of Indians. Two were reported killed. The 
other two reported that they had undressed themselves 
and with horses unsaddled they were bathing in the river 
when they were fired upon from the bank of the river. 
The attack was so sudden and unexpected that seeing 
their comrades fall and fearful of being surrounded, they 



302 Texas, the Marvellous 

fled, leaving their arms, clothing, saddles and bridles in 
possession of the Indians. 

"In the month of July last Captain Hays with twelve 
of his company encountered near Corpus Christi seventy- 
five Comanche warriors. A fight ensued which I am 
told lasted fifty minutes, nearly hand to hand. Thirty 
Indians were killed and many others wounded and routed. 
This victory was greatly due to the use of Colt's revolv- 
ers that the Texans used for the first time in this engage- 
ment to the great astonishment of the Indians, who 
fought bravely." 

It was necessity that taught these Alsatian colonists 
to defend themselves. Tragedies began to occur, for the 
Indians resented an invasion of their country. Four 
colonists went up the Medina, a few miles from Castro- 
ville, to establish a farm and ranch. The next day an- 
other colonist out hunting wild turkeys discovered the 
dead bodies stripped and their guns missing. They had 
evidently been killed while sleeping. The men were ig- 
norant of camping rules, and had built their fire against 
a dead tree, which had blazed up and made a beacon light 
visible for a long distance. This had attracted the atten- 
tion of the Indians. 

At the time of the annexation of Texas the number of 
Indians in the State was estimated at twenty-nine thou- 
sand five hundred, of which twenty thousand were 
Comanches. The others in the order of numbers were 
Apaches, Kiowas, Caddoes, Delawares, Wacoes, Ton- 
kawas, Lipans, Keechies, etc. The Comanche is the type 
that fills up our ideal of true savage life. He is the 
Bedouin of the prairie. From the earliest settlements 
this tribe was hostile to the Spaniards — looking upon 
them with contempt. Until 1836, the Comanches were 
on friendly terms with Americans. The Tonkawas us- 




A COMANCHE WARRIOR 



Life in the Early Pays 303 

ually lived near the American settlements because of 
their dread of the Comanches. They sometimes commit- 
ted petty thefts, but, as a rule, were not openly hostile. 
The tribal existence of the Tejas (or Texas), once 
powerful, had already been lost, but the name is preserved 
in one of the most brilliant stars of the American con- 
stellation. 

In 1849 it was reported that one hundred and seventy- 
one persons had been killed, seven wounded, and twenty- 
five taken into captivity by the Indians, and they had 
also stolen six thousand horses. Jurisdiction over these 
aborigines was given to the United States. During the 
Civil War the few who remained in Texas were compara- 
tively quiet. Some enlisted in the Union army, and oth- 
ers fought with the Confederates. In order to avoid 
taking part in this struggle a thousand Kickapoos started 
through Texas for the Rio Grande. When camped at 
Dove Creek, they were discovered by the Texans and at- 
tacked. Both sides suffered severe losses, Mt the In- 
dians reached the Mexican border. The Indians claimed 
that they were attacked under a flag of truce. For a 
number of years afterwards they would cross the border 
and murder outlying settlers in revenge for this fight. 
They were finally removed to the Indian Territory. 

In the two years immediately succeeding the close of 
the war, one hundred and sixty-two Texans were killed 
in Texas by the Indians. For almost ten years there 
was scarcely a month in which there was not a raid on 
some part of the frontier. A volume might be written 
detailing the particulars of these raids and murders. In 
1868 the Indians reached within less than a hundred 
miles of Austin, murdering and scalping the isolated 
settlers. But their raids, murders and stealing finally 
came to an end. 



304 Texas, the Marvellous 

The day of the Texas Ranger is passing, but it has 
not yet departed. The savage Indians have disappeared 
from the Lone Star State, but the white and brown out- 
laws still necessitate the employment of a small force 
under this name. Scarcely a year passes that at least 
one does not pass to his reward while on duty. It is in 
the long border line with Mexico that these tragedies 
generally occur. 



CHAPTER XVIII 

RANCHES AND RANCHING 

We had been journeying for a number of miles across 
fine grazing land, dotted with extensive herds of splendid 
cattle, down in Southern Texas, between Corpus Christi 
and Brownsville, when the conductor passed by after a 
halt at one of the rather infrequent stations. 

"Whose ranch is this?" I asked the train official in a 
casual manner. 

"It is the famous King Ranch," he answered, "and 
we have been on this ranch now for more than an hour. 
The next station is Kingsville, near which is the ranch- 
house of Mrs. King, the owner." 

After passing Kingsville, the railway traversed an- 
other splendid stretch of ranching country, similar to 
that on the opposite side of that station, and, as the con- 
ductor again appeared, I turned to him inquiringly. 

"Could you enlighten me as to whose ranch this is 
that we are now peragrating over?" 

"This is still the King Ranch," he answered, "and 
will be for the next twenty or twenty-five miles." 

"This seems to be a very large ranch," I answered. 
"Do you know how many acres there are in it?" 

"Altogether the ranch comprises about a million and 
a quarter of acres," was the conductor's reply. 

With that answer, I subsided. My own experience was 
so interesting that I concluded I would fathom how such 
figures affected others. I decided to try it on a friend, 
305 



306 Texas, the Marvellous 

for, after all, of what value are your friends if you 
cannot utilize them as a psychological study once in a 
while. This one was of the naturally sceptical type. 

"I spent a day on a million-acre ranch down in Texas," 
I remarked to this friend, as I was relating to him some 
experiences in the Southwest. 

"A million acres, is that all?" my friend replied with 
a rather incredulous smile. 

"Well, it is all but about a hundred thousand acres or 
so. I used the term million just to express it in round 
numbers. It is about as difficult for the owner to measure 
her acres exactly as it is to round up all of her one 
hundred thousand cattle in the spring." 

"One hundred thousand cattle!" said my friend with 
a gasp. 

"Yes, so the superintendent informed me, as we were 
speeding over the prairie in an eighty-horse-power auto- 
mobile at the rate of thirty-five miles an hour. We were 
then travelling across a fifty thousand acre field, 
and " 

"Fifty thousand acre field ! That is almost inconceiv- 
able!" 

"Yes, but the superintendent incidentally mentioned 
that there was another field of eighty thousand acres 
on the ranch." 

"Is it all grazing land?" 

"No, I saw five tractors at work overturning the pris- 
tine sod at the rate of sixty acres a day. With a night 
shift this amount can be doubled, for a tractor does not 
require any rest, and a headlight takes the place of day- 
light." 

Now, where I live, back in good old Ohio, the farmer 
who possesses a half section, three hundred and twenty 
acres, of good land is considered very well-to-do indeed, 



Ranches and Ranching 307 

and the man who owns a quarter of a section of good 
land is looked upon as a very prosperous farmer. In 
round numbers, this ranch of a milHon acres plus is half 
again as extensive as the State of Rhode Island. It is 
pre-eminently a domain, if there is such a thing in our 
agriculture. 

There have been greater land holdings in Texas, and in 
Mexico and Argentina to-day there are haciendas that 
surpass it in amplitude of horizontal surface, but none 
of them is developed or have the value of this. There 
is in Mexico, or was before the long revolution of 1910- 
15, a hacienda of seven million acres in the State of 
Chihuahua, but it was undeveloped land consisting of 
both hill and dale. It did not produce as much as the 
King Ranch. It seems almost inconceivable that such 
an immense tract of land should be the property of one 
family, and it is probably a fact that this is the largest 
ranch owned by an individual in the entire United States. 
But Texas is a land of big things, and there are many 
things in that commonwealth that are different from the 
rest of the United States. 

Ranching in Texas is not without its romance. If 
one goes back into the incipient days of that industry, 
he will discover many incidents which are as truly ro- 
mantic and fully as exciting as anything that can be 
found in our early history. The western part of Texas 
would be described by many as a great desert, and yet 
before the coming of the white man it was the peaceful 
abode of millions of buffalo, deer, antelope, and other 
game animals. The plains were carpeted with rich and 
nutritious grasses a large part of the year, and the hills 
were grown up to shrubs and trees. The grazing crea- 
tures ranged over a vast territory, migrating north in 
summer and ambling south in winter, always seeking the 



308 Texas, the Marvellous 

best feeding-grounds to which instinct infallibly directed 
them. 

When the white man came upon the scene, his primary 
effort was directed to annihilating all of these animals 
whether they were needed for food or not. He slaugh- 
tered to the right and to the left. The Indians killed only 
for food, or raiment, and thus conserved their food sup- 
ply. The buffalo yielded his hide to the Caucasian, 
which was made into a robe, while the carcass became 
repast for the vultures. He destroyed most of the deer 
and the antelope. He became more savage in some re- 
spects than the uncivilized red man — at least he had 
less consideration for others. The last buffalo of the 
great Southwestern herd disappeared about 1876, and it 
was not long afterwards that the Indians were hustled off 
to the reservations. There was no longer food left .on 
the plains for them. 

There were many wild ponies on the plains of Texas. 
Mr. Duval, in his Early Times in Texas, says: "Once, 
too, at the distance of half a mile we saw a large drove 
of mustangs, but they were much wilder than the deer, 
for when several of us attempted to approach them, they 
circled around us out of range of our rifles, every now 
and then stopping a moment, stamping and snorting, until 
at last one of them that seemed to be the leader of the 
drove, started off at full speed, and the rest following, in 
a short time nothing but a cloud of dust indicated the 
direction they had taken. Some years subsequent to this, 
a company of rangers to which I belonged, when in 
pursuit of Indians in the country between the Nueces 
and Rio Grande Rivers, met with a drove of mustangs so 
large that it took us fully an hour to pass it, although they 
were travelling at a rapid rate in a direction nearly op- 
posite to the one we were going. As far as the eye could 



Ranches and Ranching 309 

extend on a dead level prairie, nothing was visible except 
a dense mass of horses, and the trampling of their hoofs 
sounded like the roar of the surf on a rocky coast. Most 
persons probably would be inclined to doubt this 'horse 
story,' and to consider it one to be told to the 'horse 
marines' alone ; yet it is literally true, and many are still 
living who were with me at the time, who can testify that 
my statement is in no manner exaggerated." 

Kimball writes of his experiences in the Panhandle 
as follows: "At sundown a drove of mustangs, or 
wild horses of the prairie, paid us a flying visit. They 
were first seen ascending a hill at the distance of half a 
mile, and as they were coming towards us were taken for 
Indians. When seen on a distant hill, standing with 
their raised heads toward a person, and forming a line 
as is their custom, it is almost impossible to take them 
for anything but mounted men. Having satisfied their 
curiosity, they wheeled with almost the regularity of a 
cavalry company and galloped off, their long thick manes 
waving in the air and their tails nearly sweeping the 
ground. They are beautiful animals, always in excellent 
condition, and although smaller than our American 
horses, are still very compact, and will bear much fa- 
tigue." 

Soon after the vanishing of the buffalo came the cattle- 
men, who spread all over the plains from Dakota to 
Texas. Texas proved to be one of the best sections of 
this great grazing domain. It was indeed a golden land. 
It seemed as if there was fodder enough for all the cattle 
in the world. It was not long until vast herds of cattle 
were roaming over the former stamping-ground of the 
buffalo. They multiplied and spread like locusts, and 
the cattlemen became rich. Even the horses were to be 
had at that time for the catching. The cattlemen were 



310 Texas, the Marvellous 

democratic in manner, warm-hearted, brave and free- 
handed. Sometimes they were hard drinking fellows — 
but always they were dead shots. It was, indeed, a con- 
dition of primitive society. There were no restrictions, 
save those set by a primitive conscience and a neigh- 
bour's six-shooter. Neither the land nor the grass cost 
the cattleman anything at this time, and he was king 
within his little principality, the boundaries of which 
were established by the precedent of prior occupation. 

Free grass was one of the perquisites of the frontier, 
whether the domain belonged to individuals, to the school 
fund, or was part of the public domain. A man might 
possess one hundred thousand head of cattle, and not 
have the legal title to a square foot of land. His rights 
upon this range he enforced with blood and iron if neces- 
sary. Stories of sudden riches began to lure others into 
the cattle country, and iinally the cattle became so numer- 
ous that conflicts arose. These newcomers were just 
as brave as their predecessors, and they were just as 
audacious. Some of them came from distant lands across 
the Atlantic. The building of the transcontinental rail- 
roads stimulated immigration. With immigration came 
the private ownership of land. 

When the newcomers, who had secured a legal title 
to land, began to circumscribe it with wire fences, they 
came into collision with those free lances who had been 
occupying it for a decade or more. The squatter declared 
that there was not sufficient elbow room for all. Then 
came an era of wire cutting, and the result was often 
determined by the one who was the surest shot. Many 
men lay down in the burning sun never to rise again. 
This was because they disregarded absolutely the range 
boundaries that had been established by an honourable 
custom among the cattlemen. In the end, however, 



Ranches and Ranching 311 

those men who had consulted learned lawyers, who, in 
turn, peered into bulky books with calfskin bindings, won 
out, and the free lance on the prairie was compelled to 
migrate farther toward the declining sun or go out of 
business. If Mr. Smith, the original pioneer, was killed, 
his son took up the fight, or a Mr. Brown, or some one 
else entered into the controversy with a paper which 
proved him to possess the legal title to this controverted 
land. 

Thus it was that barbed wire had such an important 
part in the development of Texas. It first transformed 
the open country of the West into a series of pastures. 
Sometimes the only water holes in extensive arid areas 
were fenced in. School lands were enclosed as well as 
private property without the consent of the owners in the 
greediness of the cattle lords. The refusal of the cattle 
kings to "pay for the children's grass" aroused deep feel- 
ing. In West Texas, the entire country was divided be- 
tween the free grass and the pasture men — the former 
representing free grass for the many and the latter free 
grass for the few. Outbreaks of violence were many, 
and a perfect mania for fence-cutting arose. 

"I hold in my hand a map copied from one made by 
a grass commissioner of the land board, which shows 
twenty counties of the Panhandle in one block, wired in, 
every acre of them, in pastures built generally by cor- 
porations. Inside of those pastures are millions of acres 
of unrented and unsold school land, which are appropri- 
ated in defiance of law." These are the words of a 
speaker in 1886. In the end, wire fencing prevailed, but 
it was limited to lands actually owned or legally leased. 
The State was compelled to give its preference to the 
actual homesteader, who was granted from a quarter 
to an entire section, instead of leasing the public lands 



|1S Texas, the Marvellous 

to the cattlemen. Such was the influence of public opin- 
ion. The construction of fences also had a potent in- 
fluence on the development of the stock, for with it began 
the disappearance of the old Texan long-horn, which 
looks much better in a picture than the sleek white-faced 
Hereford. 

Before the days of the railroads in Western Texas, 
cattle drives were important events. Regular trails were 
plainly visible across the prairie both east' and west. To 
the east the cattle were driven to St. Louis or Kansas 
City, and to the west they trudged as far as California. 
It necessitated the employment of four or five men for 
every hundred of cattle. Some were old frontier men 
in the Western drives, and others were youths working 
their way to the coast. The cattle travelled slowly, as 
they were compelled to forage for their living, and it 
required from five to six months to reach the Pacific 
coast. A few wagons loaded with stores, cooking uten- 
sils, camp equipment, and ammunition followed the cat- 
tle. There were always losses on these trips, but the 
profit was ample. Hostile bands of Indians sometimes 
created havoc. But the drivers were equipped with a 
government rifle, and at least a couple of repeating re- 
volvers for protection. The trails were always lined 
with the bleaching bones of cattle and horses that had 
perished by the way, and the graves of the drivers were 
not infrequent. Some of them died from natural causes, 
but by far the greater number met an untimely end. 

There is as much change in the character of the cattle 
that one will see grazing upon the prairie as there is 
among the cattlemen themselves. A few years ago the 
long-horned steers, which are so well known, roamed 
over the prairie on an allowance of about ten acres to 
each animal. To-day you would have to make a strenu- 



Ranches and Ranching 313 

ous search to find a single good specimen of the long- 
horn Texas steer. Year after year there has been a con- 
tinual evolution. The ranchers have bred up their cattle, 
knowing that a steer of a better grade will consume no 
more of the grass than a long-horn, and will produce 
three or four times as much meat. One witnesses this 
in travelling across the broad ranges of Texas in the 
cattle that will be seen near the railroads; and again 
in the stockyards at Fort Worth, if one will glance over 
the cattle which may be seen in the pens. The cattle 
become fatter, heavier, slower, and more profitable year 
by year. 

There is an association, with headquarters at Fort 
Worth, which is known as The Cattle Raisers' Associa- 
tion of Texas, to which all the leading cattlemen of 
Texas belong. This organization devotes its attention 
to everything that is needed by the cattle industry. It 
will fight the beef trust, contest with the railroads over 
rates, maintain a lobby at Washington if necessary, 
initiate measures to prevent the stealing of cattle, and 
accomplish everything it can to elevate the cattle industry 
to a loftier standard. It maintains inspectors at ship- 
ping and market points to insure that no man disposes of 
cattle bearing another man's brand. 

In the former days the unit of area was the Spanish 
league of forty-four hundred acres, and a man always 
spoke of his possessions as so many leagues. This 
method will still be found in Argentina, Mexico and 
other countries of large ranches which have inherited thd 
Spanish computation system. In Texas the English 
system of measurement has succeeded the old Spanish 
method. The largest ranch in Texas, and doubtless in 
the United States as well, is the one known as the X I T 
ranch, owned by the Farwell Brothers of Chicago. These 



314 Texas, the Marvellous 

men undertook the contract to erect the State capitol in 
Austin, and received their compensation in land. The 
State alienated to them a little more than five counties 
in the northwest part of the Panhandle, amounting to 
about three million acres in all. X I T is said to have 
been so named because it reached into ten counties in 
Texas, but this is a mistake for it does not cover so 
many. Many blocks of considerable size have already 
been disposed of, but the bulk of it is still ow^ned by the 
original syndicate. 

Another great estate is that knov\m as the Kennedy 
Ranch down near the Gulf coast. This was established 
by the Captain Kennedy, who accompanied Richard King 
to Texas. The Kennedy, or La Parra, ranch includes 
about eight hundred thousand acres. Several thousand 
cattle are shipped to market each year from this ranch. 
The Slaughter Ranch, which comprises a half million or 
more acres out on the Staked Plain, was gathered to- 
gether by Colonel Slaughter, who was a son of a captain 
of scouts in General Houston's army. He entered the 
cattle business in the early '50s by bringing less than 
one hundred head of Louisiana cattle into Northwestern 
Texas. To-day he breeds nothing but Hereford and 
Durham cattle, and is classed among the millionaires 
of the country, and is one of the cattle kings of 
Texas. 

In Armstrong County, up in the Panhandle district, 
will also be found another interesting ranch ovraed by 
Charles Goodnight. The principal interest in the Good- 
night ranch lies in one of his pastures, which has almost 
the appearance of a zoo. In addition to being a success- 
ful cattle producer, Mr. Goodnight fully believes that he 
has unravelled the problem of preserving the vanishing 
bison, Grazing on these pastures one will see a herd of 



Ranches and Ranching 315 

shaggy beeves. On the back of each of these is a very 
noticeable hump, which is reminiscent of the buffalo that 
once wandered so freely over the plains of the Panhandle. 
Mr. Goodnight has a herd of one hundred and sixty 
buffalo ; but these others, of which I write, are not buffalo, 
and neither are they cattle. They are hybrids developed 
from breeding together bison and cattle, and ranging 
from one-quarter to three-quarters buffalo, which he has 
termed cattalo. The three-quarters buffalo resemble 
strongly the animal of the plains; those one-fourth buf- 
falo look more like the domestic cattle. In the last stage, 
the animal does not much resemble the bison, but it has 
the desired characteristics. 

The process of developing by choosing the best indi- 
viduals to propagate this new animal is still going on. 
In them Mr. Goodnight believes that he has solved the 
problem of cheap beef. The cattalo is a hybrid which fol- 
lows its buffalo ancestors in that it is free from disease, 
does not fear the blizzard of the plains, and waxes fat 
on lean pastures where the ordinary steer would starve. 
The claim is made that it has the best qualities of both 
ancestors, for in nutriment quality it is not inferior to 
that of cattle. It will cut one hundred and fifty pounds 
more of meat to the animal than a steer. These animals 
have been developed by several inbreedings until a stage 
has been reached where it is believed a new animal has 
been developed, which will prove extremely valuable. 
There are now more than thirty cattalo on the ranch. 
Those bred from Hereford cows have the white face of 
that stock. It is claimed that these cattalo will flourish 
in some of the arid sections of the West and South- 
west, for they require less food, less salt, and less water, 
and are more immune from disease. They are also fully 
as docile as cattle. If the prediction of the breeders 



316 Texas, the Marvellous 

comes true, large areas of land, which will barely nourish 
cattle, may prove extremely profitable as grazing land 
for the cattalo. 

When General Zachary Taylor was preparing an ad- 
vance upon Mexico, in the spring of 1846, he sent an 
aide up the Mississippi River to engage some steamboat 
men to assist in transporting his troops. He secured 
Captain Mifflin Kennedy, who commanded a packet, and 
Richard King, a Mississippi pilot. These two, one as 
commander and the other as pilot, had charge of the 
transport which kept Taylor in touch with his base. 
After the war Captain King for some time ran a steam- 
ship line from Point Isabel, at the mouth of the Rio 
Grande River, up to Brownsville and Matamoras. The 
vessels were small, side-wheel steamers, but in those days 
the river was deeper, and permitted uninterrupted naviga- 
tion during the entire year. 

King and Kennedy acquired a wide stretch of mesquite 
and cactus land, which was fairly alive with deer and 
wild turkey, and peopled only by a few Mexicans. It 
had been a part of that strip of doubtful territory between 
the Nueces and Rio Grande, on account of which, in part 
at least, the Mexican War was fought. It was inhabited 
by a sort of rag-tag lot of characters, who were not 
altogether the most desirable citizens. On this prairie 
they laid out Santa Gertrudis Ranch. A steer for every 
ten acres was the best that could be maintained, and they 
soon had their full quota. The partnership was later dis- 
solved, and Mr. King retained Santa Gertrudis. Captain 
Kennedy established the La Parra Ranch adjoining, and 
the holdings of the two men stretched for a long distance 
along this Gulf coast. Captain King was more than a 
mere navigator ; he had a good eye for a business oppor- 
tunity. He foresaw the unlimited possibilities in the 



Ranches and Ranching 317 

future for the great empire which constituted the State 
of Texas. 

In those days, sixty years ago and more, land was 
very cheap, and two or three acres could be purchased 
for a single dollar. It was probably all that the land was 
worth at that time, for business conditions were very 
unsettled, there were no railroads, and it was some dis- 
tance even to a Gulf port. Steamers in those days were 
few and uncertain on that highway. The transportation 
of cattle and sheep upon modern lines had not been 
even dreamed of ; hence, although the prairie lands might 
furnish feed for countless numbers of cattle, there either 
was no available market for the animals, or the price was 
unprofitable. Goodly sized farms could be purchased 
for what to-day would be considered a mere bagatelle. 
Thus it was that Captain King, living frugally, invested 
every spare dollar in more land, and evolved the immense 
ranch which he left as a heritage to his widow, 
the present owner. He saved money to buy more land 
to save money to buy more land, and so on ad 
libitum. 

The King Ranch is smaller to-day than it was a few 
years ago, for a couple of hundred thousands of acres 
have been alienated to smaller ranchers and farmers 
now living in that vicinity, and as townsites for towns 
which have been established on the lands. The prob- 
abilities are that still further sales will follow, until this 
million-acre ranch will be but a memory. Eighty thou- 
sand acres were given to the railroad company and never 
missed. The railroad in turn built a splendid hotel and 
division headquarters at Kingsville. Kleberg County is 
one of those subdivisions that you will not find on your 
old map, for it was not created until 1913, being carved 
out of Nueces County. This county is nearly all on 



318 Texas, the Marvellous 

this ranch, and an equal extent overflows into what is 
left of Nueces. 

Through a letter of introduction to Mr. Richard Kle- 
berg, son-in-law of Mrs. King, and the manager of the 
ranch, I was enabled to visit Santa Gertrudis Ranch, as 
it is known at home, and explore an institution where 
extensive farming has been reduced to a business. There 
is as much system in the methods pursued as there is in 
the average manufacturing or mercantile enterprise. 
Upon reaching Kingsville, a modern little city on the 
ranch, I telephoned to the ranch, and in a short time an 
automobile arrived to carry me out to the ranch house. 
I was conducted over various parts of the ranch, and 
afforded every facility to observe ranch life, and to 
learn how such an immense tract of land is administered. 
I did not see the entire ranch, even though we travelled 
at a high speed in a high-powered car across some of 
the immense fields. The sections that were not seen, 
however, were simply repetitions of what was shown me, 
as the ranch life centres near the ranch house, which is 
known as Santa Gertrudis. The only way that one could 
view the entire estate in a few days would be from an 
aeroplane, and the estate, although equipped with every 
other modern appliance, did not seem to possess one of 
these latest contrivances. 

Hundreds of miles of barb wire have been utilized in 
enclosing the entire King Ranch. Few of the fields are 
small, and some of them are of enormous size. One field, 
called the "little pasture," contains several thousand acres. 
In one enclosure you may find only Jerseys for the dairy ; 
in another will be shorthorns. But most of the cattle that 
I saw are Herefords. Their monotonous white faces 
stare at you from every direction. In one field will be 
calves (everything up to one year) ; in another will be 



Ranches and Ranching 319 

two-year-olds. Most of the cattle are disposed of and 
transported to other places, where they are fattened for 
the markets. In motoring over this marvellous ranch 
we followed fine turf roads. The land is as level as a 
barn floor, and was carpeted with a thick setting of grass, 
for it was virgin prairie land. 

In the centre of the fields not a fence would be in sight, 
and the vision of unbroken sod was blotted only by the 
horizon. Daisies and poppies, Texas blue bonnets and 
Indian blankets, yellow, purple and lavender flowers of 
species unknown to me, dotted the ground in great clus- 
ters. It made a variegated bloom of constantly changing 
hue. At a distance in one direction they would form 
a purple carpet, and in another direction the colour would 
be yellow or pink. The spring wild flowers were then in 
full bloom, and an unusual quantity of rain had brought 
them out in greater profusion than is customary. Later 
the prairie will be sere and brown. Windmills were out- 
lined on the horizon here and there, and herds of sleek 
cattle were browsing among the spring flowers. A rabbit 
would frequently be aroused, and an occasional coyote 
might be seen loping off in the distance. Coursing after 
a rabbit or coyote, hunting armadillos, shooting quail or 
duck, are among the diversions that are followed down 
here on Santa Gertrudis. 

A field of fifty thousand acres, if perfectly square, 
would make an enclosure almost nine miles across in 
either direction. It would constitute a fair-sized county 
by itself. These figures may convey a little conception 
of the vastness of this ranch. Twenty thousand calves 
are branded each year. In addition there are several 
thousand sheep and goats, as well as hundreds of horses 
and mules, that feed upon these pastures. The weather 
is so moderate that they run out all year, and it is an 



320 Texas, the Marvellous 

exceptional season indeed when it is necessary to feed 
the stock. The salt breeze, because of the nearness to 
the Gulf, makes it unnecessary to give salt to the cattle. 
The cowboys that one sees on this ranch are not of the 
kind usually portrayed in moving pictures; they do not 
utilize their time in riding bucking ponies for amusement, 
and they do not even carry revolvers. They politely tip 
their hats when a visitor departs, instead of endeavouring 
to have some sport with an Eastern "greenhorn." 

The management of this great ranch is now endeavour- 
ing to intensify its value. To accomplish this they are 
not only improving the quality of the stock, but preparing 
to feed the animals whenever the pasturage becomes 
scarce. The rainfall is considerable, but is not evenly 
distributed. To insure against this they are putting more 
land under cultivation, and erecting great silos in which 
to keep the feed. These range in capacity from two to 
three hundred tons. They are scattered about the horizon 
in batteries of three and five, looming out of the flatness 
like immense turrets. When the plans are completed 
there will be at least fifty of these immense food reser- 
voirs. 

"We have three hundred Mexican refugees at work 
here clearing up the brush," said the superintendent. 
"They come to us half starved, having been driven out of 
Mexico by the political troubles. We would not see 
them starve, nor could we take them in as paupers. I 
never turn one away. If you have a loaf of bread, it is 
your duty to share it. So I give them work here, and 
it is sometimes touching to see the gratitude of these 
poor Mexicans. They work faithfully, too, and I am 
glad to be able to give them something to do." Much of 
this ranch is still covered with the mesquite, that low bush 
or tree so common in Texas. It was in clearing up the 



Ranches and Ranching 321 

mesquite that these refugees were engaged. They cut it 
up into firewood. Ten thousand acres of the mesquite 
range had already been cleared up in this way at the 
time of my visit, and the work was still being pushed to 
clear several thousand acres more. 

It was interesting to watch these poor Mexicans at 
work. Men, and sometimes women, were busily cutting 
down the small trees, chopping off limbs, burning brush, 
and grubbing out the stumps. Some lived in tents, while 
others had built improvised houses out of the brush. No 
one knows better how to do this than the Mexicans. 
All of these refugees seemed contented and happy — 
happy no doubt that they had found a land where revo- 
lutions are unknown, and because they were able to earn 
an honest living, so that bread for the morrow was 
assured. 

Mrs. King is an interesting old lady of very 'modest 
tastes. She dresses plainly and lives modestly. So do 
the rest of the family. HospitaHty is open and generous. 
Charity for those less fortunate is also a prevailing trait. 
The town of Kingsville, now only ten years old, is a 
model little city. All of it is built on land that once be- 
longed to the King Ranch. And every deed contains a 
clause that intoxicating liquor shall never be permitted 
to be sold. This one fact reveals a glimpse of the char- 
acter of the owner of this wonderful ranch, and also 
gives a little insight into the reason why Kingsville is 
a model little city. 

A splendid new home, worthy to be the residence of a 
prince, has just been completed at Santa Gertrudis. It 
is just three miles from Kingsville. For years Mrs. 
King had longed for a new home, one that should rep- 
resent her ideals. When the old ranch house burned a 
few years ago, the opportunity for the realization of her 



322 Texas, the Marvellous 

dreams came. Now, at the age of past four score, this 
rich and aged woman is able to see fully realized this 
magnificent home. Many architects worked on the plans 
at different periods, famous artists and decorators were 
called into service. These men came from offices in far- 
away cities out to the broad plains, to design a home and 
decorations that would befit the scene. The Spanish and 
Moorish are the predominating architectural effects, and 
it is indeed a magnificent home that has been erected here 
on the open prairie on an elevation slightly above the 
general level of the land, which renders it conspicuous 
for many miles in every direction. It crowns the only 
hill in the region, and thus dominates the country. Com- 
ing toward it from far off across the prairie, it looks 
almost like some phantom castle floating in the glassy 
translucence of a mirage. Close to it, it loses much of 
this fairy resemblance because of its great size, but it is 
still glaringly white. In this manor house hospitality is 
of the Southern type, and on a broad and big basis. The 
visitor is welcomed at the long family table. Remote as 
this ranch seems, the world comes to it, at least as much 
as the family care for. 

The exterior of Santa Gertrudis is comparatively plain 
and has little carving or gingerbread effect on it, for such 
were the architects' instructions. It is the plainer mis- 
sion effect that was sought after. Great porches are built 
on each side, and on one side is a terrace a hundred feet 
long. The entire cost of this ranch house, which might 
better be termed a palace, for it will compare favourably 
w^ith many of the palaces of nobility, was in excess of a 
quarter of a million of dollars. There are eighteen bed- 
rooms, each of which is connected with a bath. The 
reception-rooms are massive, and the dining-room is large 
enough for a banquet hall. Every room in the house is 



Ranches and Ranching 323 

fitted with a fireplace, and also with steam heat ; a vacuum 
cleaner has been installed in every room, as well as an 
intercommunicating room telephone; there is an auto- 
matic electric elevator, and every electric contrivance 
for cooking, warming, dishwashing, etc., that inventive 
genius has been able to supply. It seems that nothing 
has been omitted which can make this a delightful place 
to live. There may be other ranch houses just as ex- 
quisite, but I have never visited one. 

Down near Corpus Christi there is a ranch which is 
noted among the many ranches of Texas, not for its 
size, but for its business development. This is the Taft 
Ranch, which contains a trifle more than one hundred 
thousand acres. In comparison with some on which you 
could mobilize the entire Austro-German armies, and 
still have plenty of elbow room, it is only a patch of 
ground. The man who owns two or three cow counties 
would sneer at the Taft Ranch, and yet this ranch of 
one hundred thousand acres probably has greater money 
value than many land aggregations five or six times as 
extensive in area. Way back in the seventies three men, 
named respectively Coleman, Fulton and Mathes, dis- 
covered a peninsula bounded by Copono Bay on one side 
and Corpus Christi and Nueces Bays on the other side, 
containing about half-a-million acres. They purchased 
some of the land from the owners, paying as much as 
a pony for a square league at times. The rest they pre- 
empted, and proceeded to assert ownership by stringing 
a fence along the north, or landward side. They bought 
cattle in the North and drove them south. They erected 
a rendering plant on the Gulf, for this was the only 
means of communication, and sometimes slaughtered cat- 
tle for the hides and tallow only. Mathes finally took a 
portion of the land and withdrew. 



824 Texas, the Marvellous 

The other remaining partners formed the Coleman- 
Fulton Pasture Company and sold stock. In this way 
David Sinton, of Cincinnati, and Joseph F. Green ob- 
tained the ownership. The ranch is a corporation, and it 
has now been thoroughly commercialized. A few years 
ago it was double the present area, but much of it has 
been sold to smaller farmers. Within five years twelve 
thousand acres of the rich pristine hog wallow have been 
broken up with the plough and cultivated in cotton and 
feed crops. A constantly increasing influx of cheap 
Mexican labour has made it possible to expand this work 
very rapidly. About twenty-five thousand acres are given 
up to cattle, and this is divided into pasture fields rang- 
ing from one thousand to ten thousand acres. In this 
way cattle of different ages and different breeds are kept 
separate. Silos dot the landscape and are an insurance 
against short grass in a drought. Com, Kafir and cane 
sorghum are grown for this silage. Everything has 
been done after a scientific fashion, from the making of 
roads to the building of towns. This makes it the biggest 
experiment station in the biggest State of the biggest 
Republic in the world. 

From Portland, on the coast, to Taft, there is a pike 
of fifteen miles as unswerving as an engineer could pro- 
ject it. There is not the semblance of a curve. It is the 
kind of a road that brings cheer to the heart of an auto- 
mobilist. As the land all lies low, and the Gulf Coast 
rains frequently come in cloudbursts, it was necessary 
to dig drainage canals and ditches to carry off the over- 
flow. Most of the land lies in San Patricio county, 
which recalls the settlement of Irishmen established here, 
who named it San Patricio. In addition to farming, this 
corporation owns and operates a machine shop, drug 
store, two banks, two hotels, a power and light plant, a 



Ranches and Ranching 325 

waterworks department, a garage, several cotton gins — 
and this enumeration is not complete. They have their 
own packing plant, where every kind of meat packing is 
done and put out under the company's own label. All of 
these enterprises are kept absolutely distinct, and each 
one is expected to show its own profit. There is even 
a hospital in which every employe, Mexican or Ameri- 
can, is entitled to treatment. Modern schools for the 
two races are maintained in each of the towns. In fact, 
there seems to be nothing in the way of intensive develop- 
ment of the land or public welfare that has been over- 
looked. 



CHAPTER XIX 

PIONEERING IN GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS 

"Isn't it splendid to think that in two or three hundred 
years, when the West has been civiHzed and the Desert 
reclaimed as your pioneer forefathers civilized and re- 
claimed the East, when wealth and culture have come, a 
man's social standing will be determined by his relation 
to us and people will be proud of what we are doing? 
After all, Mr. Holmes, the only difference between the 
East and the West seems to be that you have ancestors 
and that we are going to be ancestors. You look back to 
what has been; we look forward to what will be. You 
are proud and take rank because of what your forefathers 
did; we are proud and take rank because of what we 
are doing. And we are doing exactly what they did! 
Honestly now, which would you rather — worship an 
ancestor or be an ancestor worshipped?" 

This bit of philosophy from the lips of Barbara Worth 
is quite illustrative of Texas. Every man has a chance, 
no matter what his past has been. The Texans care not 
especially what a man has been, or what his fathers were 
before him; they accept him for what he is, and value 
him for what he can do. This characteristic of the Tex- 
ans explains in a manner the innovations that have been 
introduced both in the State and the municipal govern- 
ments. In that respect they are doing exactly what our 
forefathers did after landing on the western shore of the 
Atlantic. They flung traditions to the winds. 
326 



Pioneering in Government Affairs 327 

The Texans refuse to be hampered by antiquated stand- 
ards; they will not blindly follow tradition. The fact 
that cities have proceeded along in fixed grooves for 
many years, or so many centuries that the memory of man 
runneth not to the contrary, has little potency with this 
virile State. Texas is willing to break with the old and 
pioneer a little after its own fashion. Whether we ap- 
prove all that has been attempted or not, we can not do 
otherwise than admire the originality and the cleverness 
of some of the innovations. 

One of the great problems that Texas was compelled 
to disentangle was that of the railroads, which had been 
so eagerly sought and lavishly encouraged. The posi- 
tion of the State was unique, as mentioned elsewhere, in 
that the public lands were vested in the State and not 
the National Government. The people of Texas fever- 
ishly demanded communication, and willingly made gen- 
erous donations of money, land and bonds to hasten 
their construction. The State appropriated ten thousand 
two hundred and forty acres of land for every mile of 
railroad constructed and opened to traffic, until the public 
domain was exhausted. Much of this land was rich and 
valuable, and all of it was serviceable to the railroads in 
financing their projects. The total acreage granted to 
railroads was a domain equal to the State of New York. 
The impetus afforded to railway construction was ex- 
traordinary, and outside capital gravitated to Texas like 
water. With the exhaustion of the public unappropri- 
ated lands in 1882, this period of unprecedented activity 
ceased. 

Immediately following the period of railroad con- 
struction there arose an era of over-capitalization. The 
subject is well presented in an extract from an address 
by the late Ex-Governor Hogg. "In prosecuting the 



328 Texas, the Marvellous 

East Line case," said Mr. Hogg, "I proved by the rail- 
way officials that this railway line from Jefferson to 
Greenville cost its owners $7,000 per mile to build it; 
that they got from the State 10,240 acres of land to 
the mile ; that they sold this land for more than enough 
to pay for building the road; that they issued $12,000 
in bonds and stocks to the mile on the road, and that they 
ran it many years and maintained it in fine condition; 
that in 1880 they sold it to other parties for $9,000 in 
cash per mile, which included the stocks and bonds. The 
new purchasers immediately placed stocks and bonds on 
the road for $35,000 to the mile, thus making a clear 
profit upon the face of the transaction of about four mil- 
lion dollars. At once the new management cut down 
the train and track service, reduced wages of the em- 
ployes, raised traffic rates out of reason, and within six 
or seven years ran down the road from a good one to 
such a reckless state that no one could get an accident 
ticket over it." 

In order to pay dividends to their stockholders the 
purchasers of the railroads at inflated prices began an 
era of extortionate rates, and inadequate service arose. 
The Huntington and Gould interests, which controlled 
the majority of the railways of the State, entered into 
a pool. By its terms competition and the construction 
of competing lines were throttled. In many instances it 
cost more to ship freight originating within the State 
than from distant points outside. Rates were shoved 
up and dragged down almost at will. The lands owned 
by the railroads were not disposed of to settlers, as had 
been the intention of the State authorities, but were re- 
tained for the values to rise. It is no wonder that great 
unrest arose. Farmers were organized into societies for 
the purpose of co-operation. The question soon assumed 



Pioneering in Government Affairs 329 

political importance and entered into State campaigns. 

The radical element at last came into control. A 
clause in the Constitution placed adequate power in the 
possession of the State. The provision reads as follows : 
"The Legislature shall pass laws to regulate freight and 
passenger tariffs, to correct abuses, and prevent unjust 
discrimination and extortion in the rates . . . and en- 
force the same by adequate penalties, and to further ac- 
complishment of these objects and purposes may pro- 
vide and establish all requisite means and agencies in- 
vested with such powers as may be deemed adequate and 
advisable." As a result Texas was one of the first, if not 
the primary State, to impose radical restriction upon her 
railroads. 

The first step taken by the State in its effort to control 
the railroads was the establishment of a railroad com- 
mission. This commission was authorized to regulate 
freight rates, as well as to pass upon issues of stock and 
compel the railroads to obey existing laws for their regu- 
lation. Through its operation rates have been reduced, 
stock issues and bonds lessened, and the railroads com- 
pelled to maintain general offices within the State. Each 
issue of bonds must now be affirmed by the attorney gen- 
eral, and they must be registered in the office of the 
comptroller. When these requirements have been com- 
plied with, however, the validity of the issue cannot be 
called into question. Railroads must hold one annual 
meeting of directors within the State after giving thirty 
days' notice thereof. The commission consists of three 
elective members, and all of its meetings are open and 
informal. Many other States have looked inquiringly 
toward Texas in her pioneering against railroad oppres- 
sion and aggression, and have copied their laws to a 
greater or lesser degree from those of this State. 



330 Texas, the Marvellous 

Way up in the Black Waxy land, in Lamar County, lies 
a little city of which few have heard, that claims a dis- 
tinction all its own within the Union. This is Paris. 
Nothing more than a hustling county-seat town, this lit- 
tle place named after a great original brought upon it- 
self well-deserved notoriety by establishing the first really 
important municipal abattoir in the United States. Many 
foreign cities have adopted this practical improvement. 
I have myself visited the great municipal slaughter 
houses of Buenos Aires, the metropolis of the Southern 
Hemisphere, which are well worthy of imitation. But 
North Americans have been slow to adopt this very 
practical institution. And yet, whoever has visited the 
average slaughter house of a butcher has been amazed 
and almost sickened at the horrible odours emanating 
from the decaying offal, and the presence of the millions 
of flies that are bred there. Nevertheless the meat which 
we eat must pass through it. Hence it is that depart- 
ment heads from many cities have journeyed here to this 
little Texas city to study and observe the workings of its 
abattoir, and some other municipalities are preparing to 
follow her splendid example. 

It is not large, this city abattoir, for it cost only ten 
thousand dollars. It may not compensate in dollars and 
cents, but its returns are chiefly sanitary and hygienic. 
It may not exercise much influence in reducing the high 
cost of living; but you feel that the meat emanating 
from it is fit to eat, since it has been inspected both be- 
fore and after butchering in accordance with the stand- 
ards established by the Government. The average butcher 
would not consider himself able to erect such a model 
house in which to slaughter his animals, but here the 
smallest merchant can enjoy for a small cost all the ad- 
vantages generally afforded to millionaire packers. For 



Pioneering in Government Affairs 331 

a small sum he is accorded both live and dead inspec- 
tion, four full days of refrigeration, and delivery to his 
shops. 

It is now proposed to extend this service to farmers 
so that they will prefer to butcher the animals intended 
for their own consumption at the abattoir rather than 
at home. In this way they will be assured that they are 
eating healthy meat, and they can do their own butcher- 
ing in summer as well as winter, by the aid of the freez- 
ing establishment. The benefits to be derived are obvious 
and need little comment. Private enterprise might pro- 
vide the same advantages, but it generally does not. A 
city could well afford to lose a few dollars yearly on 
such an enterprise if it should prove necessary. 

The Galveston Plan of city government has attracted 
almost unprecedented attention all over the United States. 
The gist of the whole Plan is to inject business methods 
into city government to replace the haphazard system 
that has arisen in most of our municipalities through 
the manipulation of politics. If any city needed a reha- 
bilitation, it was Galveston after the disaster of 1900. 
The city was at that time practically bankrupt. It had 
defaulted in the payment of interest on its bonded in- 
debtedness. Scrip was being employed to pay current 
bills, and it was subject to a big discount. The city hall, 
fire and engine houses, waterworks station, and other 
public buildings were in ruins ; the lights were down, and 
the street pavements were in a deplorable condition, 
many having been washed away. 

Many disgusted taxpayers refused to pay their taxes 
because of the factional strife and dissension prevailing 
in the City Council. The city had been in control of a 
vicious political ring. It was indeed a grave situation 
that confronted the city. The actual destruction of prop- 



332 Texas, the Marvellous 

erty and the necessity to provide against the recurrence 
of a similar disaster necessitated the raising and expendi- 
ture of enormous sums of money. It sometimes needs 
a crisis, however, to bring forward the best that there 
is in a city as well as in an individual. This proved 
to be the turning point for Galveston, for the citizens cast 
aside tradition, bade adieu to the past, moved out of the 
old ruts, and evolved a new system for city government. 

There existed in Galveston at that time an organiza- 
tion known as the "Galveston Deep Water Committee," 
which accomplished great things for that city. To it 
was due, more than any other influence, the commission 
plan of government. To this body of patriotic men the 
individual seemed very small, but the community loomed 
large. The members of this committee decided that there 
was an imperative necessity that the charter of the city 
be thoroughly overhauled along broader and better lines. 
It also felt the need in this crisis of having an efficient 
city government, in order to stimulate and encourage 
the people and invite the necessary capital into the city. 

The committee held nightly meetings for a month in 
discussing civic affairs before the commission idea was 
suggested. A tentative charter was then drawn up by a 
sub-committee appointed for that purpose, which con- 
formed as near as possible to the organization of a great 
business corporation, providing the duties and sharply 
defining the responsibilities of the heads of the various 
departments. This bill was presented to the Legislature 
of Texas, and was passed only after a long and bitter 
fight. As it did not receive a two-thirds vote on final 
passage, the charter did not go into operation until ninety 
days after the adjournment of the Legislature. By it the 
commission was given "control and supervision over all 
the departments of such city," with the power to appoint 



Pioneering in Government Affairs 333 

and discharge all other employes employed in municipal 
service. It was just one year from the time of the great 
storm before the city government passed into the hands 
of the Board of City Commissioners. 

The new charter became effective September i8, 1901. 
This did not entirely quiet the opposition, since the orig- 
inal charter provided that three of the members of the 
commission of five should be appointed by the Governor. 
This provision was attacked as being unconstitutional, be- 
cause it deprived the people of the right of self-govern- 
ment. The commission exercised both civil and criminal 
jurisdiction. Months of litigation followed in both the 
civil and the criminal courts. The new charter was 
finally upheld by the highest civil court, but was declared 
unconstitutional by the criminal court of last resort in 
passing upon the validity of an arrest, because part of 
the members were appointive. This anomalous result 
was due to the peculiar jurisdiction of the courts in 
Texas. Each court is supreme in its own sphere, but 
the decision practically invalidated the commission gov- 
ernment. To avoid all sources of trouble the Galveston 
Plan was altered to provide for the election of all the 
members of the City Commission, and in this way the 
Plan stands to-day. The amended charter was approved 
in 1903. As a result, the original board appointed by the 
Governor was overwhelmingly elected by the people. By 
.the election, however, the will of the people was rep- 
resented and the Commission became competent in the 
exercise of the criminal as well as civil authority. 

Under the Galveston Plan the City Commission is prac- 
tically a board of directors, who are elected at large by 
the qualified voters of the entire city every two years. 
It most nearly resembles that followed by Congress for 
the District of Columbia. Up to this time the Com- 



334 Texas, the Marvellous 

mission has been composed of five practical business men, 
who recognize the fact that business methods and prac- 
tical economy should be employed in transacting the 
complicated affairs of a great municipal corporation 
rather than politics. The president and his four mem- 
bers sit around a long table and administer the municipal 
affairs. These five men constitute the "Board of Com- 
missioners of the City of Galveston." The city is not 
divided into wards, which was instrumental in getting 
rid of the petty ward politician who is responsible for 
so much evil in politics. There is, of course, no assur- 
ance that some one, at some time in the future, who is 
not a practical business man, should not secure a place 
on this Commission. 

"Has the Plan entirely eliminated politics?" I asked 
the Mayor. 

"No," he answered, "it has not, but it has accom- 
plished a great deal in that direction." 

The Galveston Plan does not contain any unqualified 
guarantee that the people at some time may not become 
negligent and permit the powers of corruption to obtain 
control. It is not an infallible panacea for all municipal 
disorders. The Plan will not run itself. The people 
must remain wide awake ; they must continue to demand 
the very highest class of public servants, and must be 
willing to pay a reasonable price. It has, however, elim- 
inated many of the evils of city government, and has 
thrown a number of safeguards around the municipal 
administration which are very meritorious. It has sim- 
plified the working of municipal government, has ren- 
dered it more direct, and has limited the number of those 
directly charged with the management of city affairs. 
Above all, it has centralized responsibility. The people 
know whom to hold responsible for failure. If there is 



Pioneering in Government Affairs 335 

mismanagement of a department, the blame can promptly 
be laid at the door of the commissioner in charge of that 
department. 

This recognition of personal responsibility has un- 
doubtedly caused each commissioner to take more of a 
personal interest and greater pride in the proper man- 
agement of his department. He realizes that he must 
be responsible for the defects in his administration as 
well as the merits. Of the five commissioners one is the 
mayor-president, who exercises the rights, powers and 
duties conferred upon the office of Mayor by the Consti- 
tution of Texas. He does not, however, possess any veto 
power, for a majority vote of the Commission alvirays 
prevails. The commissioners among themselves desig- 
nate which one shall fill the various commissions. One 
of them is known as Commissioner of Finance and Reve- 
nue; another as Commissioner of Waterworks and Sev^r- 
erage; a third is Commissioner of Streets and Public 
Property, and the fourth is Police and Fire Commis- 
sioner. The duties of these various commissioners are 
fairly well defined by the titles of their offices. 

The city charter provides that the Commission shall 
meet in regular session at least once every week. At 
these meetings very little oratory is indulged in. One 
thing that interested me is the fact that this Commis- 
sion never exceeds in expenditures the budget that it 
prepared at the beginning of the fiscal year. Any com- 
missioner may be removed from office for misconduct, 
drunkenness, or incompetency by a District Judge. 

Practically all of the large and many of the smaller 
cities of Texas have now adopted the principles of the 
Galveston Plan, but most of them have made certain 
modifications which they believe are improvements. So 
one hears of the "Houston Plan," the "Fort Worth 



336 Texas, the Marvellous 

Plan," and others as well. Whatever the unsatisfactory 
results may have been in a few cities, it is generally con- 
ceded that in Galveston it accomplished wonders. The 
men chosen to administer the municipal affairs have en- 
tered upon their task with energy, business efficiency, 
and public honesty. They set an example for the citi- 
zens and officials of every municipality in the United 
States. 



THE ENB 



BIBLIOGRAPHY 

Bancroft, H. H. : History of the North Mexican States and Texas. 

Barker, Potts and Ramsdell: History of Texas. 

Brown, John H.: History of Texas. 

Brown, John H. : Life and Times of Henry Smith, the First American Gov- 
ernor of Texas. 

Crane, Wm. C. : Life of Sam Houston. 

Davis, M. E. M.: Under Six Flags— the Story of Texas. 

Deshields, James T. : Border Wars of Texas. 

Driscoll, Clara: In the Shadow of the Alamo. 

Duval, J. A.: Early Times in Texas. 

Green, Thomas J. : Mier Expedition. 

Garrison, George P.: Texas — A Contest of Civilizations. 

Houston, M. C: Texas and the Gulf of Mexico. 

Johnson, Frank W. and Barker, Eugene C: A History of Texas and 
Texans. 

Jones, Anson: Republic of Texas. 

Kendall, George Wilkins: Narrative of the Texan Santa Fe Expedition. 

Kennedy, William: Texas; the Rise, Progress and Prospect of the Republic 
of Texas. 

Lester, C. E.: Sam Houston, and His RepubUc. 

Lester, C. E.: Life of Sam Houston. 

Lubbock, Francis R. : Six Decades in Texas. 

Maillard, N. Doran: Republic of Texas. 

McDaniel, H. F.: Coming Empire; or Two Thousand Miles in Texas on 
Horseback. 

MoRPHis, J. M.: History of Texas. 

Pennypacker, Anna J. H. : History of Texas. 

Ramsdell, Charles R. : Reconstruction Days. 

Smith, Justin H. : Annexation of Texas. 

Smithwick, Noah: Evolution of a State. 

SowELL, A. J. : Early Settlers and Indian Fighters of Texas 

Stife, Edward: History of Texas. 

Thrall, Homer S. : Pictorial History of Texas. 

Wilbarger, J. W. : Indian Depredations. 

Williams, Alfred M.: Sam Houston and War of Independence in Texas. 

Yoakum, H.: History of Texas. This history covers period from its first 
settlement to its aimexation. 

337 



INDEX 



Agriculture, 33, 165. 
Alabama Indians, 204-5. 
Alamo, the, 90 ei seq., 119, 241. 
Alice, 192. 
Alpine, 147. 
Amarillo, 260. 

Americans, invasion of, 22 et seq. 
Anahuac, 41-42, 180. 
Apaches, 19, 118, 291. 
Aransas Pass, 168. 
Argentina, 252, 307. 
Armstrong County, 256. 
Aridity, 142, 148. 
Artesian wells, 168. 
Audobon, the naturalist, 128. 
Austin, Lake, 243. 
Austin, 232 et seq, 265, 314. 
Austin, Moses, 27 ei seq. 
Austin, Stephen F., 25 et seq., 44, 66, 
'132. 233. 241- 

B 

Bastrop, Baron de, 28, 220. 

Beaumont, ri, 208, 211. 

Bexar, 13. 

Bird Creek, 288. 

Birdsville, 229. 

Black Waxy Belt, 217 et seq. 

Bluff City, 166. 

Boll weevil, 218. 

Bowie County, 99, 206. 

Bowie, James, 51, 104, 108, 112, 120, 

292, 297. 
Bowie, Rezin P., 297. 
Braunfels, Prince Solius, 165, 244. 
Brazos County, 220. 
Brazos River, 136, 247-248. 
Brewster County, 147-148. 
Brownwood, 233. 
Brownsville, 169, 182, 183, 191 et seq. 



Buccaneers, 170-173. 

Buenos Aires, 330. 

Buffalo, 254, 308, 316. 

Buffalo Bayou, 128, 134. 

Burnett, David G., 34, 57, 64-65, 70, 

I3S- 
Burr, Aaron, 20. 



Cabeza de Vaca, 13. 

Cacti, 264-265. 

Caldwell, 220. 

Cameron County, 8. 

Camp Verde, 145. 

Campeachy, 171. 

Canary Islands, 94. 

Cart War, 84. 

Carranza, Venustiano, 183. 

Carriza, 191. 

Carl's Haven, 165. 

Castro, 144. 

Castro, Henry, 299, 304. 

Castroville, 302. 

Catholicism, 30-31. 

Cattalo, 316. 

Cattle Raisers, Association, 313. 

Cattle, 305 et seq. 

Cattlemen, 229. 

Chapparal, 198. 

Cherokee, 36, 268, 272. 

Cherokee County, 206. 

Civil War, Texas in, 87-88, 173. 

Cities, lo. 

Cochran County, 263. 

Coleman-Fulton Pasture Company, 

324- 
Coleman, 233. 

Colorado River, 202, 233, 243. 
Colonists, the Austiiv 29 et seq. 
Comanches, 19, 96-8, 285, 295, 298, 

302. 



339 



340 



Index 



Confederate Home, 241. 

Consultation, the, 46, 49. 

Convention, the, SS-57- 

Copono Bay, 323. 

Coronado, 13. 

Corpus Christi, 77, 165-168, 169, 323. 

Corsicana, 221. 

Cotton, s, 218-219, 225, 258. 

Cotulla, 291. 

Council House Fight, 96. 

Counties, 8. 

Cowboys, 6, 143, 261, 320. 

Coyotes, 25. 

Crockett, Davy, 105, in. 

D 

Dakotas, 3. 

Dallas, 10, 222 et seq. 

Dallas State Fair, 225. 

Davis, Jefferson, 143. 

Davis, Jeff County, 8. 

Dawson, 298. 

De Aury, the pirate, 170. 

Del Rio, 144, 146, 297. 

Dennison, 226. 

Desert, 262-265. 

Dewees, W. B., letter of, 38. 

D'Hanis, 144. 

Dimitt's Landing, 165. 

Dolores, 297. 

Dove Creek, 303. 

Duval, J. C, 53, 308. 

E 

Eagle Pass, 185-186. 

East Texas, 3, 4. 

Edwards, Benjamin W., 36. 

Edwards, Hayden, 36. 

Education, 16. 

Elephant, Butte Dam, 154, 200. 

El Paso, 10, 148, 151 et seq., 290. 

El Paso County, 147. 

Empresarios, 34-36. 

England, 74. 

Espiritu Santo Bay, 165. 



Fannin, James, 52, 53-56, 120. 
Fences, cutting of, 310-312. 
Firearms, 6. 
Fires, prairie, 254. 



Flags of Texas, 12. 

Flowers, 319. 

Fort BUss, 158. 

Fort Brown, 193, 195. 

Fort Duncan, 186. 

Fort Griffin, 254. 

Fort Inge, 144, 293. 

Fort Lipantitlan, 168. 

Fort Mcintosh, 189. 

Fort St. Louis, 162-163. 

Fort Worth, 10, 222 et seq., 313. 

Fredonia, Republic of, 36. 

Fredonian War, 203. 

Fredericksburg, 245. 

French, 299. 

Fruit, 206. 

Fulton, 168. 



Galveston, 9, 10, 87, 134, 169 tt seq., 

301, 332-335. 
Galveston Island, 65, 170, 175. 
"Galveston Plan," 175, 332-335. 
Galvez, Count, 172. , 
Germans, 243-245. 
Germans, 300. 
Goliad, 18, 52, 53-55, 84. 
Gonzales, 46, 112, 293. 
Goodnight, Charles, 314-316. 
Grass Fight, the, 47. 
Great Britain, 60. 
Greene, Tom, 8. 
Greer County, 80. 
Guadalupe Hidalgo, treaty of, 78. 
Gulf coast, 160 et seq., 212. 
Gutierrez expedition, 22. 



H 

Hamilton, A. J., 88. 

HarUngen, 199. 

Harris County, 135. 

Harrisburg, 135. 

Hays, Jack, 287-288, 289, 30i-3oa. 

Henderson, J. Pinckney, 73. 

Hereford cattle, 318. 

Hidalgo County, 9. 

Highland, 226. 

Hockley County, 263. 

Hogg, Jas., 5, 8, 327. 

Honey, 145. 

Houston, 9, 10, 127 et seq., 235, 383. 



Index 



341 



Houston, Fort Sam, loi. 
Houston, Sam, 51, 57, 61-62, 66, 70, 

85-87, 128 et seq., 235,61, 239, 

241, 266 et seq. 
Houston & Texas Central R. R., 219, 

221. 
Huntsville, 282. 



Immigration, 71, 284. 

Indians, 68, 82-85, 95-98, 116-118, 

124-125, 204-205, 219, 254, 284 

et seq. 
Innovations, governmental, 326 et 

seq. 
Irrigation, 154, 189, 198, 200, 211. 
Isleta, 151-152, 204. 
Iturbide, President, 30. 

J 

Jackson, Andrew, 274, 277. 
Jefferson, President, 25. 
Johnson, F. W., 32. 
Jones, Anson, 71, 73, 75-76. 
Juarez, 154. 



Kafir com, 324. 

Kendall, G. W., 69, 246, 251, 309. 

Kennedy, Captain, 314, 316. 

Kickapoos, 303. 

King, Richard, 314, 316. 

King Ranch, 314 et seq. 

KingsviUe, 317-318. 

Kleberg County, 317. 



Ldfitte, Jean, 171-172. 

Laguna del Madre, 169. 

Lamar, MirabeauB., 67-69, 232, 233, 

234, 277- 
Lamar County, 330. 
La Parra Ranch, 316. 
Laredo, 183, 187-188. 
La Bahia, 23. 
La Salle, Chevalier de, 13, 91, 160- 

165, 220, 275. 
Lavaca River, 161. 
Legislature, Texas, 329. 
Limestone County, 295. 



Lincoln, Abraham, 280. 

Llano Estacado, 9, 238, 261 et seq. 

Lockhart, Matilda, 97, 294. 

Long, James, 23. 

Los Angeles, 153. 

Louis XV, 24. 

Louisiana, Province of, 25. 

Lubbock, F. R., 270. 

M 

Magee, Lieutenant, 22. 

Marble Falls, 238. 

Matagorda, 165. 

Matagorda Bay, 161-162, 165, 244, 
275- 

Matamoras, 51, 195, 196. 

McAllen, 200. 

Medina, 302. 

Medina Lake, 100. 

Mesquite, 144, 188. 

Mexico, 14, 172, 286, 307. 

Mexicans, 9, 83-84, 120, 195, 236, 
320. 

Mexico, war with, 77-79, 187. 

Mexico, Gulf of, 3. 

Mexican Revolution, 180-185. 

Mier, 191. 

Milam, 249. 

Milam, Benjamin R., 34, 48-49, 104. 

Miller, Joaquin, 253. 

Mina, Xavier, 170. 

Mirage, 258. 

Missions: 14; Alamo, 105-106, 119; 
Concepcion, 120-121; Espada, 
123; San Saba, 118, 124; San 
Jose, 122; San Juan, 122; 
Valero, 92. 

N 

Nacogdoches, i8, 23, 24, 35, 29, 42, 

93, 201-203. 
Napoleon, 25. 
Nashville, 248, 297. 
Natchez, 23. 
Natchitoches, 119, 201. 
Navarro County, 221, 298. 
Navasota, 220. 
Negroes, 9, 218, 219, 247. 
Nueces River, 77, 169, 190. 
Neutral Ground, 25. 
New Braunfels, 245. 
New Mexico, 8i. 



342 



Index 



Newspapers, the first, 32, 131. 

Niles City, 230. 

Nolan, 21. 

Nuevas Filipines, 12. 



Oak Cliff, 226. 

Oak, post, 207; live, 207. 

Oil, 209. 

Oklahoma, 225, 260. 

Olmstead, F. L., g6. 



Paisano, 147. 

Palms, 198. 

Palo Alto, 193. 

Palo Duro Canyon, 256. 

Panhandle, 3, 4, 250 el seq. 

Paris, 330. 

Parker, Cynthia Ann, 296. 

Parker, Quanah, 296. 

Parker's Fort, 295. 

Paso del Norte, 153. 

Pecos City, 131. 

Pecos River, 4, 186. 

Petroleum, 209, 211, 221. 

Piedras Negras, 186. 

Pike, Zeb, 12, 95. 

Pine, 206. 

Pirates, 170-173. 

Plum Creek, 299. 

Point Isabel, 192, 193, ig6, 316. 

Polk, James K., 75. 

Ponies, wild, 308. 

Population, 6. 

Port Arthur, 211, 213. 

Post oak, 207. 

Portland, 324. 

Port Lavaca, 165. 

Prairie View, 219. 

Prairies, 250, 253. 

Prairie dogs, 250-252, 258. 

Presbyterian Church, 205. 

Presidio County, 147. 

Prickly pear, 144, 188 

Prohibition, 261. 

R 

Rabbits, 251. 
Railroads, 82, 327-329. 
Rainfall, 320. 



Ranches, 188, 256, 257, 305 et seq. 

Ranch, Santa Gertrudes, 316 et seq. 

Rangers, 83, 197, 286-289, 304. 

Red River, 80. 

Red River County, 9. 

Refugee, 52, 168. 

Republic of Texas, 12, 15, 60 el seq. 

Resaca de la Palma, 194. 

Rice, 211-216. 

Rice Institute, 133. 

Rio Grande River, 3, 77, 146, 181 el 

seq. 
Rio Grande City, igi. 
Rockport, 168. 
Roma, 191. 
Rosenberg, Henry, 179, 180. 



Sabine Pass, 87, 170. 

Sabine River, 2, 201. 

Sanfordyce, 199. 

San Antonio, 10, 13, 18, 63, goetseq., 

119, 143, 203, 285, 287, 295. 
San Antonio River, 18, 99. 
San Antonio Road, 201-202, 219. 
San Augustine, 202. 
Santa Anna, 41, 43, 77, 112-113, 140, 

239- 
San Felipe de Austin, 32, 42, 275. 
San Fernando, 94. 
Sanjacinto,battleof,s8,i36-i39,276. 
San Jacinto River, 133. 
San Patricio, 18, 52, 168, 297. 
San Patricio County, 324. 
San Saba River, 297. 
Santa F6, 79. 

Santa F€ Expedition, 68-69, 232, 251. 
Santa Fe Trail, 187. 
Santa Gertrudes Ranch, 316. 
Sheridan, General, 141. 
Slavery, 40, 79, 84 el seq. 
Slaughter houses, municipal, 330. 
Smith, Deaf, 8, 138, 239. 
Smith, Henry, 50, 66, 108, 109. 
Somerville, Gen., 63. 
Spain, 203. 
Spanish bayonet, 264. 
Spanish language, 91, 149, 195- 
Spaniards, 13, 15. 
Spindle Top, 209. 
Staked Plain, 261 el seq. 
Sweetwater, 150. 



Index 



343 



Taft, 324. 

Taft Ranch, 323. 

Tampico, 170. 

Tarpon, 167. 

Tarrant County, 2 2g. 

Tascosa, 261. 

Taylor, General Zachary, 79, 166, 
192-194, 3r6. 

Tejas, II, 303. 

Tenoxtitlan, 220, 293. 

Texarkana, 208. 

Texas as state, 73 et seq.; secedes, 
85-87; republic of, 6oeiseq.; con- 
stitution of, 56; seal of, 66; navy 
of, 61; university of, 242. 

Texas & Pacific Railroad, 229. 

Texline, 2. 

Timber belt, 205 et seq. 

Todos Santos Creek, 291. 

Tonka was, 302. 

Travis, William Barrett, 41, 46, 105, 
109 et seq. 

Travis County, 233. 

Trinidad, 260. 

Trinity River, 40, 206, 222, 227. 

Trinity Bluffs, 228. 

Tropical fruits, 198. 

Turtle Bayou, 180. 

Turtle Bayou Resolutions, 42. 

Twiggs, General David E., 86. 

Tyler, President, 74. 

U 

Ugartechea, General, 46. 
United States, 24, 39, 60, 76. 
University of Texas, 242. 
Uvalde, 144. 



Vaca, Cabeza de, 164. 
Valverde County, 146. 
Van Dyke, Henry, 26, 72. 
Vasquez, General, 62. 
Vera Cruz, 94. 
Veramendi Palace, 103. 
Victoria, 298. 
Viesca, 248. 

W 

Waco, II, 226, 245-248. 

Wacoes, the, 303. 

Wallace, W. A., 290-292. 

Washington on Brazos, 56, 65, 220. 

Waterloo, 233. 

Water, 5. 

Waterway, the iimer, 169. 

Weatherford, 150. 

Wells, Jim, 8. 

Wells, Artesian, 5. 

Westfall, E. D., 292. 

Wharton, William H., 43, 47. 

Wilkinson, General, 21. 

Windmills, 319. 

Wolves, 251. 



X. I. T. ranch, 313. 



Yoakum, 257. 
Ysleta. (5ee Isleta.) 



Zapata, 191. 

Zavala, 57. 

Zavala, Lorenzo de, 34, 240. 



(^ 



030 



M' 



>i: '\ 




